Destiny's Crucible
by Silver Warrior
Summary: When a new mutant erases almost his entire life when his powers emerge, its up to the X-Men to help him through his crisis and learn control.
1. New Resident

Disclaimer: X-Men: Evolution is property of Marvel Comics and as such I do not own it. I am merely a fan showing my love of the show by writing fan fiction about it. Certain original characters are mine, and they will be identified at the end of each chapter.

Timeline: This takes place after the last aired episode. No clue what its name is.

Note: Regular names are given when they are not in costume. When in costume, they go by their costumed name. Meaning Scott Summers in costume is Cyclops. Jean Grey, however, remains Jean Grey. In the comics she is known as Phoenix or Marvel Girl, but she has yet to be called Marvel Girl on X-Men: Evolution and she has yet to take the Phoenix Force as well. And Rogue is just Rogue, no matter what, though I do know her real first name. At least, the one given to her in the movies. Dunno if it's the same for the comics or the cartoon.

-

Bayville, the Xavier Institute-

Charles Xavier removes the helmet that connected him to Cerebro. He had just detected a massive upsurge of psionic power from somewhere in the southern US. It was massive, even more than he had detected when he had first found Jean. He hadn't been able to locate the identity of the new mutant, but such a massive explosion of psionic power would draw the attention of the media. And it wouldn't be pretty, either. He set Cerebro to scanning the headlines of all of the newspapers and the new channels, as well as the emergency channels of the police and medical facilities for that area.

What was worse was that a lot of people would be against this new mutant. With power like that, they would be afraid and people in general usually tried to destroy what they were afraid of. Psionics were the most feared next to those with extreme physical mutations. Being able to mess around with a persons mind was a psychic no-no to most, though there were some who didn't care. If they were going to do this new mutant any good, they were going to have to find him, and fast.

Reaching out with his mind, the powerful telepath contacts members of his covert ops team, the X-Men. He sends for the best ones for this particular job.

Scott Summers, aka Cyclops. He was capable of firing ruby red energy blasts from his eyes. Due to an injury sustained when he was younger he was incapable of controlling his power, so he was forced to wear a pair of special shades, or a specially made visor, to keep the beams from destroying everything in his direct line of sight. He was second in command of the X-Men, answering only to Professor Xavier himself. H e had recently graduated but due to time lost when mutants were banned from the school she was being forced to repeat a semester.

Kurt Wagner, aka Nightcrawler. He had phenomenal agility and his strength was belied by his size. He was a teleporter, capable of shifting his being into a different dimension temporarily. Upon exit, he would be wherever he wanted to go, within a certain distance. He also had a lean figure, which was surprising for as much as he ate. It was theorized that his high metabolism came from using so much energy teleporting. He was a junior in high school.

Jean Grey, simply known as Jean. She was a promising psionic, with incredible telekinetic potential. Her abilities with telepathy were good, but her real power was with her telekinesis. She had recently graduated but due to time lost when mutants were banned from the school she was being forced to repeat a semester.

Rogue was known only by that name. She possessed an uncontrolled parasitic power that relied on the touch. Whenever she would have skin-to-skin contact with someone, she absorbed some of their energy. Memories, impressions, if they were a mutant she temporarily absorbed their powers. The longer she held contact, the longer the absorption lasted on the surface. She kept the impressions within the recesses of her mind. She was a senior in high school.

The last person he summoned was Logan, also known as the Wolverine. He was almost a living weapon. An accelerated healing factor combined with a skeletal structure laced with adamantium, the strongest known metal, made him virtually indestructible. He was an exceptional hand-to-hand combatant, one of the best in the world. A set of claws made from adamantium and enhanced senses completed him, making him an invaluable member of the X-Men. His true age and identity were still unknown.

These five would be the best suited to contacting this new mutant. Scott to talk to them if it was a boy. Jean to be the voice of reason and if it was a girl. Kurt in case they needed to hunt the new mutant down. Logan if they ran into trouble, to be the adult in charge, and to help track them. And Rogue to incapacitate them if they proved to be a danger to themselves and others. They were experienced, and would be able to work together flawlessly.

After calling them, Professor Xavier exits the Cerebro chamber, leaving the computer to keep up its search. He heads for briefing room where the X-Men he has selected for the mission will meet him. It isn't far, and he makes it there well before any of the selected X-Men, even Kurt. Of course, Kurt had been eating when he had been contacted, and very little got in the way of Kurt's metabolism. Only Logan was able to control him. Most of the X-Men looked up to Logan as a mentor every bit as much as they did Professor Xavier himself, though Kurt looked to him almost like an uncle. And he was like a much older brother to Kitty Pryde, a young Junior who had the ability to walk through solid matter.

The five selected mutants slowly dribble into the room. First Logan, then Kurt followed by his adopted sister Rogue. Finally Scott and Jean entered the room hand in hand. They had started dating shortly after the last battle with Apocalypse, and Professor Xavier himself was glad to see it. The two of them complemented each other, building upon the other's weaknesses so that they were negated, while making their strengths even stronger. With a smile, Professor Xavier welcomes the five X-Men into the room and tells them to sit.

"Professor, has Cerebro detected another mutant?" Jean asks.

"It has, but it was overloaded and I was unable to get an identity or an exact lock on their location," Professor Xavier replies, "there was an incredible surge of psionic power. The impressions I got moments later were even worse than those that I detected from you, Jean."

Jean's face goes white as chalk. Her psionic powers, namely her telepathy, had nearly crippled her mentally for life. At the age of ten, she had witnessed her best friend being hit by a car and dying. She had experienced her friend's thoughts firsthand through her telepathy, and from there she had been withdrawn and depressed. What made it even worse was that her telepathy was unable to be controlled and she heard all thoughts around her. She had withdrawn herself from others to offset her open telepathy until she met Professor Xavier and he helped her by erecting barriers in her mind until she was mature enough to control her powers properly.

"Professor, are you sure?" Jean asks weakly. Scott gives her hand a squeeze as a show of support. He knew what she had gone through. He had already been taken under Professor Xavier's legal custody for a year when Jean's powers had surfaced.

"I'm afraid so, Jean," Professor Xavier says sadly, "Jean, you remember how to place the shields to help this person, do you not?"

"I do, Professor," Jean says weakly, "when do we leave?"

"You will be leaving shortly," Professor Xavier says, "as soon as Cerebro detects anything in the news, I will forward it to you."

"Ah'm assuming ah'm going if we need ta take this guy down?" Rogue asks in her thick southern accent.

"Unfortunately, yes," Professor Xavier answers, "I wish I could go myself, but I am still needed here to help Cerebro locate this new mutant."

"Professor, were there any useful impressions?" Scott asks, "like where this new mutant is, their gender, anything?"

"Only one, Scott," Professor Xavier says, "they are close to your age."

"So the new mutant is a telepath, eh?" Logan asks after a moment of silence.

"A psionic would be more appropriate," Professor Xavier explains, "Cerebro detected various powerful telepathic and telekinetic powers. It is possible that this new mutant has powers that we will not be able to cope with."

"What do you mean, Professor?" Kurt asks.

"Kurt, there are infinite possibilities of mutant powers, but those that are the most unpredictable, the hardest to control, and the most devastating are those that are part of the mind," Professor Xavier explains, "psionics, such as myself and Jean, are dangerous if uncontrolled. You remember when Jean's powers took an unexpected boost. It was devastating. And from what I could gleam from Cerebro's records of the psionic burst, this new mutant has more potential than Ms. Grey."

"Professor, are ya saying that there is a powerful, untrained psionic out there?" Rogue asks fearfully. She still remembered what Jean's mind was like that day. She would never forget it, because it was now a part of her very being.

"I'm afraid so, Rogue," Professor Xavier says sadly, "we must find this new mutant fast. Their initial power was great enough to overload Cerebro's detection grid for psionics."

"Professor, shouldn't that be impossible?" Jean asks. Cerebro's psionic detection grid was the most fortified part of the entire system, especially when the Professor was hooked up to it.

"This mutant was experiencing many diverse emotions at the moment of the outbreak," Professor Xavier answers, "this enhanced the strength of the psionic blast."

"Professor, can you tell how much area the blast covered?" Jean asks.

"It covered a two hundred foot radius," Professor Xavier replies, "this is nearly unheard of in an inexperienced psionic."

Jean nods, not trusting herself to speak. Having such a person around would be very dangerous until they learned to control their powers. Hopefully, between the Professor and herself, they would be able to erect mind wards that would limit the new mutants' power while they were training their abilities.

"When do we leave?" Logan asks.

"As soon as possible," Professor Xavier says, "you will be going to the coastal plain area of Tennessee."

"Ah know that area," Rogue says, "ah paid a few visits there when ah was livin' with Irene. Nice area, friendly people outside of the major cities."

"Well, it won't be too bad," Logan says, "Kurt, you'll stay with the X-Jet. Your holo-emitter has been on the fritz again lately and we don't want to alarm the locals."

"Yes, Professor," Kurt says. He didn't mind that much. There were plenty of video games on the X-Jet.

"So the elf'll only be going out at night, and sticking to the shadows then?" Logan asks.

"Yes," Professor Xavier says, "you are dismissed. I will forward any information that Cerebro finds."

Logan nods and the five X-Men leave the briefing room and head for the hanger where the X-Jet was kept. It doesn't take them long to prep the jet to leave.

In transit-

"Hey Red, you picking up anything?" Logan asks. Jean was trying to locate the new psionic through her own powers.

"No, we're too far away," Jean sighs as she finally gives up for the moment, "I'll try again when we arrive."

"Incoming transmission," Kurt says, "it's the Professor."

"I read ya, Charles," Logan says.

"Cerebro has picked up an emergency medical signal from the area you are going to," Professor Xavier says, "twenty-three people were inducted to the emergency room of a hospital with signs of very little brain activity. Simultaneously, the police have a young man in custody, the only person at the scene who was not in the same condition."

"So that's our mutant?" Logan asks.

"I'm afraid so," Professor Xavier replies, "reports indicate that he is being detained because he is suspected of being a mutant. Apparently the local authorities are not very mutant friendly."

"So it looks like we got a problem on our hands," Logan remarks.

"I'm afraid so, Logan," Professor Xavier says, "the local authorities are not kindly disposed towards mutants. There are reports of several mutants being put to death in the local correction facilities, usually by prisoners though it is possible that the guards just turned a blind eye to it all."

"So we are possibly going into a very hostile environment," Logan says, "I guess we'll have to rescue to new mutant, huh? Whats his name?"

"Jesse Atalas," Professor Xavier answers, "17 years old, attends one of the three local high schools. Moderate student, shows great potential in his studies. Potential that he would reach by applying himself."

"Charles, we're gonna have some problems getting him out if the authorities are against mutants, be it official or unofficial," Logan says, "we may end up needing Kurt to teleport him out of wherever they are holding him."

"I hope it doesn't come to that," Professor Xavier says, "it will raise all sorts of problems. Any kind of prison break will, though perhaps I will be able to pull some strings. But first, scout things out. Find out the situation and go from there."

"Okay, Professor," Scott says, "we'll work this out. A mutant like Jesse, if it is Jesse, would be too dangerous to leave alone."

"Given the nature of his powers, it would be just as dangerous as Cain still being on the loose," Professor Xavier says gravely.

"We're gonna have to find him," Scott says, "its too dangerous leaving him out, loose like that. We'll have to get him and bring him back to the mansion."

"Yes, and if worse comes to worse we will have to put him on lockdown like we did to the Juggernaut," Jean says.

The rest of the flight goes fairly well, with more and more information coming in through Cerebro. By the time Scott lands the X-Jet in a rural area not far from where the incident with the new mutant took place, they have enough information to be fairly sure that Jesse was the new mutant. They activate the X-Jet's cloaking field and walk down the ramp as Logan unloads his motorcycle and Scott unloads the X-Van.

"We're not that far from where the incident took place, according to the police report," Scott says as he revs up his motorcycle, "Jean, you come with me. We'll check the victims in the hospital. Logan, you and Rogue check the scene of the incident."

"Of course, slim," Logan snorts as he gets on his motorcycle and revs it up, "lets go, Rogue."

Rogue nods and dons her helmet before climbing on the back of the motorcycle. Logan kicks the bike into gear and takes off.

Scott turns to Kurt. "Kurt, you stay here and monitor everything. Keep us all up to date on data from Cerebro and the Professor."

"Of course," Kurt replies, "good luck."

"This is where it happened?" Rogue asks. It was a small meeting hall. Judging from the reports, it had been rented out for a family reunion.

"Yeah, and there's a scent of fear in the air," Logan says after taking a sniff, "fear, horror. Whoever did this was horrified at what they had done."

"It must have been a horrible thing to witness, whatever it was," Rogue murmurs, "and to know that you were responsible for it."

Jean is walking out of the hospital, her emotions in turmoil. What she had seen had been beyond belief. Twenty-two people, several of them children who were at the oldest twelve, all reduced to a vegetable state. Their minds were wiped clean. They would have to completely start over; some of them were too old to try. One elderly woman had died in the process, her mind not able to take the strain. Her mind had completely shut down, and her body had not been able to take the strain.

The enormity of what happened finally caught up to Jean when she got inside the X-Van and she completely broke down crying. Scott rushes to comfort her, holding her gently until the sobs finally pass. His look of worry and sympathy soothes her as she finally tells him what she had found out.

"Its horrible, Scott," Jean murmurs, "I can feel the impressions of their last conscious moments. Imprints of a boy, either nephew or cousin, as the cause. Some of the younger children were teasing him, and his anger finally exploded, causing what happened. Scott, the boy at the police station is the one responsible, but he had no control over it. We have to get him out of there. He's a danger to everyone, including himself, until he can get his powers under control."

"We will help him, Jean," Scott promises, "the Professor can help him get his powers under control. He helped you get yours under control and he'll do the same for Jesse."

"So it is him?" Professor Xavier asks over the X-Jet's radio.

"I'm afraid so, Professor," Jean answers, "Scott and I passed by the police station, and I searched for a strong psychic presence. Professor, his power is not gigantic, but it is wild and untamed, enhanced by his emotions. I couldn't even determine where his powers lie. It may be a broad range of abilities that, while not strong individually, give strength to one another and make him appear to be more powerful."

"They moved him back to his home," Logan adds, "unfortunately, the closest family he has that isn't a vegetable is in Memphis, and that's only a cousin. He was taken from his mom when he was three and her older sister and her husband gained custody. The uncle died earlier this year. Aunt is one of the ones in the hospital. Kids basically all alone."

"So it would be best if he came with us," Kurt comments.

"Ah'm not so sure," Rogue says, "look at all that he's been through. He lost someone who we presume was a father figure earlier this year. Now he is responsible for losing the rest of his family. He'll need psychological help in addition to his training."

"We already knew that, Rogue," Jean says kindly, "it's recommended for anyone with some kind of psionic power, especially telepathy and astral projection. It's just that there has never been a recorded incident like this. There aren't really that many psionics in the world, and none of them as far as we know of had such a violent first experience with their powers. He caused pain with his."

"You shall have to pick him up," Professor Xavier tells them, "get him in the morning. He is no doubt in need of a good nights sleep."

next morning-

The next morning, at 8 am, at a small house in a rural area of the southern part of town, a teenage boy with dark brown hair and light green eyes wakes up, shivering. His mind was in turmoil. Flashes of memory not his own tormented him. Nightmares of seeing family fall to the floor, their eyes dull and almost lifeless.

Getting out bed of, still dressed in the clothes he had worn to the family reunion the day before, the teen walks into the bathroom and cleans up. He was fortunate that it was Sunday. He didn't feel like going to church. Not yet. His mind felt too jumbled. And he didn't feel safe around others anymore. He knew that somehow he was the cause of what happened to his family. And this meant that he couldn't be near anyone. He couldn't risk anyone else getting hurt because of him.

The young man fixes himself some breakfast, cold cereal with orange juice. He eats in silence, trying not to dwell on the events of the day before, and failing. He finishes, putting the dishes in the dishwasher. He heads back to his room and pulls out one of his books, sitting down to read, hoping that this would give him a focus to keep the flashes of what really only could be the memories of his family inside of his head.

It is almost ten o'clock when the phone rings. The young man picks it up, hoping that it is good news about his family.

"_Jesse?"_ It was Locke, Jesse's best friend. He was four months younger than Jesse was, though he had been skipped a grade due to some home schooling when he was younger as well as some intense studying even after he had started attending the public school system.

"Hey Locke," Jesse says.

"_Hey dude, you sound kinda raw_," Locke's voice comes from the phone.

"I feel raw," Jesse replies.

"_Why is that?_" Locke asks.

"Well," Jesse begins, then proceeds to tell his best friend what had happened yesterday to the best of his abilities.

"_Man Jesse, I hope things work out for you_," Locke says, "_hey, a van just pulled up in your driveway. Someone is getting out._"

"What do they look like?" Jesse asks.

"_One guy looks a bit gruff, he's older than the others. Another is a young woman, perhaps our age, with red hair. Last is a guy wearing red sunglasses, about like Kevin in build, my height perhaps. Hair is a lot like yours._"

Outside, Logan, Scott, and Jean step out of the X-Van. The house seemed normal. You wouldn't know that an extremely powerful, untrained psionic resided within. Next door a young man was sitting on the front porch swing talking on the phone.

"He's talking to Jesse," Jean says, subtly indicating the teenager on the swing, "he's telling him about us."

"So he's forewarned about us," Logan says, "Jean?"

"Neither one knows what happened yesterday," Jean replies after focusing her telepathy, "though the one on the porch swing, Locke, I can't properly penetrate his mind."

"How is that possible?" Scott asks, "is he a mutant too?"

"No, I think it's a natural mental shield," Jean replies, "they're rare, but they occur every now and then. Its nothing to worry about."

"If you say so, Red," Logan says as he steps up to the front door and rings the doorbell.

"Locke, I'll call you later," Jesse promises, "I need to see what these people want."

"_Talk to you later then_," Locke replies. Jesse hangs up the phone and walks to the front door and opens it. He doesn't open the glass door out of caution.

"May I help you?"

"Jesse Atalas?" the adult asks. He was the oldest of them, and he obviously had a gruff demeanor. The other guy was closer to his own age, probably a senior in high school, as was the girl. The girl was looking at him curiously, yet with a tint of sadness in her eyes, and Jesse felt that she could read his thoughts. Jesse nods to answer the adult's question.

"May we come in?" the adult asks.

"Who are you?" Jesse demands.

"Don't worry, we're friends," the girl answers, "we just want to talk to you about what happened yesterday."

Jesse's eyes narrow. He didn't trust people easily, but the look of sincerity on the girls face makes up his mind. He unlocks the glass door and invites the three inside.

"Have a seat," Jesse says, "do any of you want a drink?"

Scott, Logan, and Jean sit on the couch, but decline drinks. Jesse leans against the door to the kitchen, looking at his three guests. "Talk."

"Quick and to the point, aren't ya bub?" the adult chuckles.

"I don't have time to waste," Jesse replies, "I'm worried about my family."

The girl gets a pained look on her face, but quickly covers it up. Jesse catches it, however.

"You know something," he says, "what do you know?"

"Yes, we do," the girl says, "my name is Jean Grey. This is Scott Summers," Scott waves his hand, "and this is Logan. Jesse, what do you know about mutants?"

Everything really hinged on this question and its answer. If Jesse hated mutants, then there was no telling what he would do.

Jesse blinks in surprise. "I don't know much, beyond what they say on the news, and that's rarely flattering. But I suppose there are good mutants and bad mutants. My friend Locke knows more about them. Says they fascinate him, and they also fascinate me, but I just let him do all the research and then we discuss it. Wait, are you saying that a mutant caused what happened to my family?"

Jean nods, afraid of what Jesse's reaction could be.

"And that," Jesse swallows, "I'm the mutant responsible? I'm responsible for whatever happened to my family?"

"Your what we call a psionic," Jean says, just loud enough for Jesse to hear her, "a mutant with various abilities that are directly linked to the mind. Telepathy or mind-to-mind talk, telekinesis or moving things with your mind, projecting your mind to other places through astral projection, the possibilities are almost limitless."

"And what did I do to my family?" Jesse as, moving over to a chair and sitting in it before his legs gave way.

"Mind erasure," Jean replies, "you wiped their minds clean of everything. There's nothing of their minds left."

"Meaning what, exactly?" Jesse asks, though he already knows.

"That your family is alive, but that's it," Logan says, "their minds are gone, forever."

Jesse blanches and lowers his head into his hands and sobs. Jean walks over to Jesse's side and hugs him, letting him vent his emotions in a safe way. At the same time, Jean slowly begins building a few crucial psionic barriers within Jesse's mind.

Jesse feels like something is tugging directly into his brain, and he pushes Jean away. "What are you doing! Did you just go into my mind!"

Jean blinks as she recovers, surprised that an untrained psionic had detected her putting up the barriers. "I was putting some barriers up in your mind, so you wouldn't accidentally use your powers. I'm a mutant as well, with powers similar to yours. I have telepathy, telekinesis, and a few other abilities."

Jesse nods in understanding. "Sorry. Please continue. I don't want to hurt anyone, intentionally or otherwise!"

Jean nods and places her hands on Jesse's temples, making more barriers. The sheer number of abilities he had was amazing! There were even a few that she had never encountered before! In all of the abilities she recognizes, Jean felt only slightly above average strength, though that would change with training. Jean finally finishes.

"Is it done?" Jesse asks, feeling Jean's presence leave his mind. Jean nods. "Thank you."

"It was my pleasure," Jean says, "you have a strong mind, Jesse. Those barriers will not hold up forever, and eventually the only barriers that could be strong enough to hold your powers in would be your own. You'll have to train."

"But where?" Jesse asks.

"We're from a school in Massachusetts that specializes in teaching mutants how to adapt to their new abilities," Scott offers, "we're taught how to use our abilities to their fullest, to use them to defend ourselves and others if we have to. And with the view a lot of people have of mutants, we need to be able to defend ourselves."

"What can you do?" Jesse asks curiously, "I know Jean has abilities like mine, but what can you do?"

"Well, I can't really show mine off because it can be used only for offence," Scott says, "and I have no control over it."

"He shoots energy beams out of his eyes," Jean explains, "his body absorbs sunlight during the day and converts it into energy that he emits as ruby-red blasts from his eyes. They're quite powerful, and have a lot of force behind them. He wears his glasses because he can't control his powers."

"Guess we're both stuck with the term 'Four-eyes'," Jesse chuckles, adjusting his own glasses. Scott nods in amusement. "What can you do, sir?"

Logan scowls at being called 'sir'. "First thing kid, don't call me sir, or mister. Call me Logan. I don't mind being shown respect, but we're equals as mutants."

"Logan has an accelerated healing factor that's quite powerful," Jean explains, "he's virtually immune to poison, he has senses as good as any animals, and he has a few other attributes."

Logan unsheathes his claws to demonstrate. "Made of adamantium, virtually indestructible. My whole skeleton's laced with it. Bullets hardly do any damage in a bony area."

"So you're an incredible fighting machine, I take it," Jesse speculates.

"He's the best among us," Scott says, "Logan is in charge of physical training. Jean and I help with various mental and control training, or learning teamwork. You'd likely work with Jean and Professor Xavier, the guy who runs the school, to control your abilities. The Professor is also a strong psionic."

"So I'd have to leave here if I went with you," Jesse says, "leave my home and my friends."

"I know it sounds bad," Jean begins, but Jesse raises a hand to stop her.

"I only have one real friend, and a few other acquaintances," Jesse says, "my family is now gone, though I do have a cousin in Memphis, but she would be unable to take me in. So I guess I may as well join you."

The three X-Men blink in surprise. No other new mutant had been so agreeable, except for Kurt, and he had obvious reasons. Then again, Jesse did have a major problem, and he probably knew the rumors about how the local law enforcement dealt with mutants.

"Can you give me a day or two to get everything in order?" Jesse asks.

"Of course," Logan replies, "we'll contact the Professor and he can arrange for your school papers to be transferred to Bayville High."

"Thanks," Jesse says, "it should be fairly simple to do. What all would I be able to bring with me? Can I bring my books? I love to read."

"Of course," Jean says, "we can give you as much time as you need."

"Thanks," Jesse says, "now, tell me more about the place that is going to be my new home."

one week later-

"There, all packed," Jesse mutters as he closes the last suitcase. He had filled three suitcases with clothes, another with his books, and the final suitcase with mementos of his family. His cousin Tracy had come up with her family and they had set things up so that the homes of his family would be taken care of. They had also arranged things for their grandmother's funeral. Jesse had nearly completely broken down when he found out that she had passed away.

After explaining everything to Tracy, Jesse was on his way to Bayville and the Xavier Institute. He didn't really want to leave, but he didn't want to risk living with the only real family he had left. He didn't want to risk destroying their minds like he had the rest of his family's.

"You take care, Jesse," Tracy says after giving him a goodbye hug outside. Jesse had met Rogue and Kurt, and he was more intrigued with Kurt's appearance than frightened. Rogue's power was the one that frightened him. Scott, well, he was able to joke with Scott about wearing glasses all the time. It was something Jesse knew about quite well. And neither one of them could get rid of their glasses. A small accident when Scott was younger damaged the part of his brain that could have eventually earned him complete control over his optic blasts, but as it was he could never gain full control. And Jesse had to wait a few years for his prescription to stabilize before he could get any kind of corrective surgery.

"Yeah dude, take care," Locke says. He and his family had been told what had happened, but they didn't have anything against mutants.

"I'll do my best," Jesse says, "no guarantee's."

"As usual, with you," Locke chuckles, "always getting into trouble."

"As I recall, you would just sit back and watch me get in trouble," Jesse says, "usually with her."

Jesse points at Locke's little sister Katie. The blonde girl, only a couple of years younger than either Jesse or Locke, scowls at Jesse. "You're the one who usually starts the trouble."

"Yeah yeah," Jesse shrugs, "listen, I'll try to write as often as possible."

Tracy's son and daughter, Barnes and Anna, run up to Jesse and give him goodbye hugs that Jesse returns. The two of them were his favorite cousins, and he would miss them. They didn't care that he was a mutant, luckily, but they were afraid of what he could do.

"I'll miss you two," Jesse says, "you two take care."

"We will," Anna promises. Barnes nods in agreement.

"Hey Jesse, we need to leave," Scott interrupts.

"Okay Scott," Jesse says as he picks up his travel bag containing some of his favorite books, "I guess I'm ready."

Jesse finishes loading up the X-Van with his luggage and the group takes off for the X-Jet.

"This is your transport back home?" Jesse asks incredulously when he gets a glimpse of the X-Jet.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Logan chuckles.

"I'll say," Jesse says, "that's a custom model of a military aircraft, the XR-71 Blackbird, isn't it?"

"You're familiar with it?" Scott asks, surprised.

"I had a small interest in military aircraft years ago," Jesse replies, "never really learned much, but a few facts stuck with me."

"Well, that's our ticket back to the mansion," Scott says, "Jean, Kurt, and Rogue probably already have the preflight check-up done. We just need to load up the X-Van and ourselves and we can be on our way."

After loading up the X-Van and Jesse's luggage, the group straps themselves in, Jesse's eyes darting every which way to take in everything he could.

"Ease up, kid, you'll be in here again," Logan assures the teen, "you've seen news reports on the X-Men, right?" At Jesse's nod he continues. "Well, we are the X-Men, and if you want to once your training has gone far enough you can join up. With your abilities, once they are fully explored and brought under control, could be a major help to mankind."

"I would definitely love to do that," Jesse says, "to make up for the damage they have already done."

"Good sentiment," Logan says as he takes control of the X-Jet and guides it into the air via its VTOL capabilities. Jesse sways slightly, looking a bit pale.

"Get airsick?" Rogue asks kindly.

"Actually, I've never flown before in my life," Jesse replies, "closest I've ever done is ride a roller coaster."

"Well, if you do get airsick, there are barf bags," Kurt says, "I used to get airsick, but not anymore."

"That's good to know," Jesse says, "so how long will this flight take us?"

"Several hours," Scott replies, "Bayville is pretty far from here."

Jesse nods. "Ah. So, can you tell me about the kind of training I'm expected to do?"

"Well, first we'll have to see what the full range of your abilities is," Jean replies, "luckily, since you've almost fully matured physically, your powers won't grow in strength that much, but new abilities may pop up with training or with age. The Professor has said that he hasn't developed any new abilities since he turned thirty. After we determine the full range of your powers we can train you to harness them. After that, its up to you."

Jesse nods. "So, can you tell about the other mutants where we're going?"

"Sure, what do you want to know?" Kurt asks jovially. Kurt, while his appearance was not frightening to Jesse, was amusing to the teen. His attitude reminded Jesse of a kid on a sugar high.

"Well, Kurt isn't it, you can tell me about the guys there," Jesse replies, "and if she will, Jean can tell me about the girls."

Kurt blinks. "Now that's an odd request."

"Its simple, really," Jesse replies, "I figured you would know everyone fairly well with your attitude, Kurt, but Jean would be able to give a better description of the girls. I definitely would not want to make any of them mad at me unintentionally. Especially not girls who are mutants. I wouldn't want to have to run for my life from a girl who can shoot fire or something from her hands because I insulted her unintentionally."

Kurt chuckles. "Um, there is a girl who can do that."

Jesse blinks. "Ooookay. My life has definitely gotten more interesting than I thought it had."

"The girls aren't so bad," Kurt says, "just don't cut in front of them getting to one of the bathrooms. Then you're asking for trouble."

Jesse chuckles. "Tell me more about the other guys."

"Well, first there's Bobby," Kurt begins, "he can control ice. He's a pretty fun kid, but gets into trouble a lot. Then there's Jamie. Any kind of bump to him creates a clone of him, and the harder the bump, the more clones he produces."

"Its quite hard getting the correct him for lessons because he has a habit of using his clones to do the work for him," Jean simply adds, "though it does cut his homework time down. Since each clone is a part of him, he knows what they know, and learns what they learn."

"That could be useful," Jesse says, "he could leave a clone at the Institute to train in other things while he goes to school like a normal kid."

"It also makes him excellent for spywork, though not as good as the elf," Logan adds, "he'd need to be trained first."

"What about the other guys?" Jesse asks.

"Well, then there's ray, also called Berserker," Kurt says, "his power is kinda wild, and so is he."

"Yeah, but he has nothing on Jubilee," Jean says, "she can create firework-like plasma energy from her hands. Great for parties, but she can also create a lot of damage if she wants to."

"Who names their child Jubilee?" Jesse asks.

"Her full name is Jubilation Lee," Rogue says. Jesse wrinkles his nose.

"Okay, she did herself a favor getting that nickname."

"Then there's Rahne," Jean continues, "we call her Wolfsbane. She can transform from a human to a wolf, and even hold on to a half-human, half wolf form that is excellent for combat."

"Now that sounds cool," Jesse says, "though I'll have to remember not to agitate her. I do not want to be bitten."

"She wouldn't bite you!" Kurt exclaims, "at least, you'd have to make her really, really mad to do that."

"And I have a rare knack for making girls of any age do just that: get extremely mad at me," Jesse says.

"I guess you're talking about that blonde girl?" Logan asks.

"Katie, Locke's little sister," Jesse frowns, "I honestly think she has it in for me."

Jean bites back a giggle. She hadn't meant to read Katie's mind, but the girl had been thinking so 'loud' that she couldn't help but 'overhear' how much Katie would miss Jesse. It sounded to Jean like Katie had a small crush on Jesse. Or at least liked him more than she let on.

"Then there's Kitty," Jean says, "she's a sweet girl. She can phase through solid matter. She's a junior now."

"She can walk through walls?" Jesse says, "that's a cool power. How did it first activate?"

"She fell through her bed on the second floor of her house all the way to the basement," Jean replies.

"She didn't get hurt, did she?" Jesse asks.

"She was more frightened than hurt," Jean answers.

"Kitty's real cool," Kurt pipes up, "a terrible cook, I'm afraid to say, but she's learning. And she's very tolerant. But when she does lose her temper, watch out!"

"I'd say that goes for all women," Jesse says, "I have yet to meet a woman whose temper did not scare me senseless."

"I agree with you there," Kurt says. Both boys were oblivious to the glares Jean and Rogue were giving them. Scott and Logan were doing their absolute best to conceal their snickers.

"And just what do ya mean by that?" Rogue demands.

Jesse eeps. "Well, I simply meant that I have a healthy fear of the female temper. That's why I try to be as polite as possible."

Both Rogue and Jean seem satisfied by his answer. Kurt and Jean continue to tell Jesse about the other residents of the Xavier Institute, as well as other prominent mutants they knew.

"You mean Warren Worthington the Third is a mutant?" Jesse asks, "he was the angel that was in the news last year?"

"Yep," Scott says, "Rogue and I went to find him. That was when we found out that Magneto was still alive."

"This Magneto, he's very dangerous, is he not?" Jesse asks.

"He's stuck on the idea that humans and mutants can't live together," Logan growls, "and he has his own team, and if push comes to shove he can recruit the Brotherhood to fight us as well."

"Yeah, but the X-Men still outnumber him," Kurt says, "but Magneto is still very powerful. He's very difficult to beat in a fight."

"What kind of power does he have?" Jesse asks.

"He controls magnetism," Scott says, "every aspect of magnetism is his to control should he exert the will to do so."

Jesse winces. "Such a power is incredibly strong. He can do a lot if he puts his mind to it. He could kill people instantly with the iron in their blood."

"I don't think he can exert so fine a control," Logan says, "or perhaps he does not wish to kill. He has no qualms about fighting, but I do not think he wants to kill anyone. Separate humans and mutants into their own societies, yes, but not kill anyone."

"So he wants mutants to live apart from humans?" Jesse asks, "and let me guess: he wants to have himself as the leader of the new nation of mutants. How stupid! People should be allowed to choose where they live and who they live with! Freedom of choice is our greatest gift."

"I agree with you there," Jean says.

"Are there any mutants who have mind control abilities?" Jesse asks. The atmosphere changes dramatically. "Um, did I say something wrong?"

"No, its just that we don't like thinking about him," Jean says, "Mesmero. He was a mutant used by Apocalypse to take control of mutants to help get free. He used most of the X-Men. Rogue. Myself. Kurt. Kitty. Ororo's nephew Evan. He used us without care."

"That is nasty," Jesse admits, "I sincerely hope that I do not meet him."

"Good luck," Logan says, "he always shows up when we least expect it."

The rest of the flight went off fairly decently. Jesse learned a fair bit about his fellow mutants, what it meant to be a mutant, and had even had a few meditative exercises explained to him to help him bring his powers under control.

"Hey kid, look out the window," Logan says. Jesse does so.

"Is that… Bayville?"

"Yep. Looks great, doesn't it?" Logan asks as he heads for the Xavier Institute's hanger.

"Is that the Institute?" Jesse asks when he spots the mansion.

"Yep, that's home," Scott says.

"Home," Jesse murmurs, "that'll take time."

Logan hears what Jesse said, but says nothing. He hadn't really had a home until Charles had invited him to come and teach at the mansion. To teach the new mutants how to defend themselves without using their powers. For some reason, he knew how, though he couldn't really remember everything. He could remember fighting in World War II. He could remember fighting alongside Captain America and several others. He even remembered seeing the young boy who would grow up to become Magneto. But he could not remember who he had originally been. And it was only thanks to the Professor that he could remember anything from before he had been taken by Weapon X.

As the X-Jet comes to a stop, Jesse puts away his book. He had actually found time to read a book cover to cover during the flight, despite all of the other conversation. He definitely loved to read. Walking down the ramp of the X-Jet, Jesse sees several people awaiting them. One is a bald man in a wheelchair, another is an attractive African-American woman with white hair, another was a blue furry man-like creature, and the last was a young teenage boy with long blonde hair who bore some resemblance to Scott. Jesse immediately recognized Professor Charles Xavier, Ororo Munroe or Storm, and Hank McCoy or Beast, but he did not recognize the last teen. Scott, however, did.

"Alex! You're here!" Scott rushes up and hugs his younger brother, who returns the hug enthusiastically.

"So, you went and got a new guy for the team?" Alex Summer asks.

"Well, maybe not for the team, but we're going to help him," Scott replies.

"Ah, Jesse, I am so glad that you could come," Professor Xavier says, "I am terribly sorry to hear of what happened to your family.

"Yeah, well, it couldn't be helped," Jesse says, a pained expression on his face, "I'm just glad that there is someone around to help me."

"We are here to help you," Professor Xavier says, "Mr. McCoy will show you to your room where you can get settled in."

Jesse nods. "When can I start training?"

"Well, we naturally will give you a few days to settle in before we even begin any type of training," Professor Xavier explains.

"Thank you," Jesse says, "what about schooling?"

"It will take some time before your papers are transferred from your old school," Professor Xavier says, "but we can have you completely enrolled in Bayville within ten days."

"Will I have more control by then?" Jesse asks.

"It will be hard to tell until we see what you can potentially do," Professor Xavier says, "but, you will hopefully have some rudimentary control. All it takes is focus."

"I have focus," Jesse says, "and a goal: to never let what happened happen again."

"An admirable goal," Professor Xavier says, "Dr. McCoy will show you to your room."

Jesse picks up two of his suitcases while Beast grabs the rest.

Jesse's room was spacious, but not more so than any of the other bedrooms in the mansion. Jesse was impressed with the luxury and was worried that he wouldn't fit in, but Beast assured him that he would. After setting the suitcases down, Jesse unpacks some clothes for the next few days. Afterwards, Beast takes Jesse on a quick tour of the mansion, showing him where the bathrooms and such were. After the tour, it was time for dinner. Beast suggested that he have dinner in his room and meet everyone first thing in the morning, but Jesse argued that he was not a morning person and he didn't want the first impression his fellow mutants got of him was being a grouch.

"Well, it won't be long until supper, so you can wash up quickly if you want," Beast says, "just don't get lost. I have to go help prepare the final touches of the meal."

"Kurt was right about you," Jesse says, "you may have an intimidating look, but you are perhaps the gentlest man I have ever met."

"Why, thank you," Beast beams. It wasn't often now that a stranger gave him such a complement, even one who was a fellow mutant. The two part ways and Jesse goes off to see if he could remember where the closest bathroom was. After finding it, he tries to find the dining room again, but can't. He beats a fist into his other palm in frustration.

"argh! Where is it!"

"Where is what?" a younger feminine voice asks from behind, "can I help you?"

Jesse turns around to see a brown-haired girl, perhaps the same age as Katie, meaning fifteen or sixteen, looking at him.

"Hey, are you the new student?" the girl asks, "um, Jesse?"

"That's me," Jesse replies, eyeing the girl when something clicks, "Kitty Pryde, right?"

The girl blinks. "Yes, how did you know? Are you telepathic?"

Jesse laughs. "Yes, but that's not how I know. I asked Kurt and Jean to tell me about the others here so I won't be completely uncomfortable around you all if I knew at least a bit about you, and what your capable of."

"That makes sense," Kitty says, "so, what are you trying to find?"

"The dining area," Jesse replies, "its dinner time, isn't it? And I wasn't able to get much more than an apple on the flight here."

"Yeah, the X-Jet doesn't have much in the way of food except for military rations and only Mr. Logan would eat them willingly. Or Kurt."

"Or me if I'm hungry enough," Jesse replies, "so, would you mind showing me the way? I'm lost."

"I'd be glad to," Kitty replies cheerily. Jesse chuckles inwardly. Kurt was right. Kitty was a cheerful young lady. Though Jesse felt that perky was a better description. And perky could wear thin on him, eventually.

The two make their way to the dining hall, where everyone else already was.

"Ah, I see you have met Kitty," Professor Xavier says.

"I got lost," Jesse says, a bit sheepish, "she was nice enough to show me how to get here. I have a poor sense of directions at times."

"Quite understandable," Professor Xavier says, "please, take a seat."

The dining table was filled with various foods, from mashed potatoes to baked ham. Many of Jesse's favorite foods, and some foods he now craved. He guessed those were from the parts of his family that he now carried within him. Filling his plate, Jesse noted that everyone seemed completely at ease with one another. They trusted each other. Jesse sincerely hoped that he would feel like that one day as well.

'Maybe it won't be so bad here after all,' Jesse thinks, his thought unknowingly strong enough for Jean and Professor Xavier to hear without trying. The two share a look and smile. Yes, perhaps things would work out after all.

-

This fic won't be that long, perhaps fifteen chapters that cover a full school year starting just a week or two before Halloween, but it is crucial. It's a set-up for the sequel. This story will set up the original characters, as well as facilitate the changes in the current team.

Also, Logan will be a bit of a mesh of everything I know about him, period. From the way he is in X-Men: Evolution, to the way he was in the other show and to the way he is in the comics. He's simply by far my favorite Marvel character, and is quite possibly my favorite comic character period, with his competition being Kyle Rayner the Green Lantern, the Spectacular Spider-Man, and the ever-classic Superman. I cannot decide which of those four I like the most.

And does anyone recall the name of the girl that was made from Logan's genes, the one with the claws in her hands and feet? If you know of a site with plenty of X-Men: Evolution info, namely various mutants that live in the Xavier Institute, their looks, and their powers I would greatly appreciate it. Just leave the link in your review or e-mail it to me.

Description of Jesse: 5' 9" tall, average build, unruly brown hair with silver-gray streaks that appeared after the psionic explosion, light green eyes, silver and gold toned wireframe glasses, wears plain clothes, similar to what you see Scott wearing on the show.

Description of Locke: 6' 1", lean build, dark brown hair, brown eyes, wears some name brand stuff occasionally.

Description of Katie: 5' 6", slender build, long honey blonde hair, light green eyes, wears normal clothes, usually in a soft yellow or pale pink, sometimes a baby blue.

Normally, at the end of each chapter in my stories I try to advertise a favorite story of mine that is in the same fandom as the story itself. Only problem is, I don't have any favorites in X-Men: Evolution fics. The only one I have ever found that I liked I lost the link to months ago. So instead, if you are a fan of the anime's Digimon or Dragon Ball Z, or the Harry Potter books, I encourage you to read my other works. Or look at my Favorite Stories for dozens of other great works of fan fiction or my Favorite Authors page for dozens of wonderfully talented authors.


	2. Training and School Begins

I'd like to think gaul1 and Wanderer3 for reviewing. Wanderer3, thanks for the info. I don't know much about Legion, but I am gonna try to make Jesse more original. He won't be a Mary Sue (or whatever the male equivalent is!) though the power potential is there. I plan to keep him grounded with other things if I ever let him get over turning his family into vegetables (mentally, that is. literally turning them into vegetables wouldn't be much of a power, would it? Be a fun one though!). If anyone can point out some good sites to hunt up X-Men: Evolution info or detailed info on other Marvel characters, I'd appreciate it.

And does it make any sense at all that reading a Legend of Zelda fic gave me the inspiration to get back to work on this chapter?

This chapter was revised on 6/11/05.

-

The next day, Jesse awoke with a start. At first he panicked, being in such unfamiliar surroundings but then settled himself by reminding himself that he was at the Xavier School for the Gifted. After settling down, Jesse takes a look at the time. It was 6 in the morning. Opening up his mind, Jesse goes through the mental training exercises Jean had taught him. They were simple breathing control exercises, but they calmed him down and gave him focus.

Jesse finally gets out of bed and gathers up some clothes and heads for the nearest bathroom. Luckily, there was no line just yet, but he decided to be as quick as he could. Jean was walking up to the bathroom with her own stuff just as he was getting out. Blushing because Jean was still in her nightgown, Jesse gives a quick 'good morning' before hurrying to his room to finish getting ready for the day.

Breakfast was a crazy affair. Everyone who had a power that could benefit them to getting some more food or getting something before someone else used it, Kurt being the most prevalent next to Kitty, who moved through peoples' bodies to get what she wanted while Kurt teleported around. Jean used her telekinesis to lift things away from people while Logan used his claws to spear various foods. Jesse also noted with some amusement that whenever Logan reached for something, nothing got in his way because everyone darted their own hands back. Except for Kitty, who would boldly snatch food right off Logan's claws. Apparently Logan had a soft spot for the girl. Jesse guessed it was because she was so different from himself. Or maybe he was a softy at heart and Kitty had wormed her way into it with her attitude.

Jesse asked Scott why the Professor allowed everyone to use their powers like that at breakfast and Scott merely replied that he couldn't stop them, and it provided them with practice in a non-lethal yet hectic situation. Jesse couldn't help but agree with that. Scott said that breakfast helped Jean train her powers better than almost anything else. Jesse kept this in mind for when he got control over his own telekinesis.

"So Jesse, did you have a good nights sleep?" Scott asks once things were somewhat settled down.

"Not too bad," Jesse replies as he pours himself a glass of orange juice, "no dreams, which is probably a plus right now, and the bed was the most comfortable I've ever been in."

"No dreams is a good sign," Jean muses, "the comfortable bed may have helped with that."

"Whatever it was, I'm glad," Jesse replies, "normally I sleep poorly in a strange place, even though I go to sleep a lot faster than I do at home."

"You up for a day of preparation, Specs?" Logan asks. Jesse doesn't even scowl at the nickname. He had learned early on that Logan liked to give everyone a nickname. Kurt was Elf, Kitty was Half-Pint, Scott was Slim, Jean was Red, Evan (who was with the Morlocks) was Porcupine, Professor Xavier was Chuck or Charles, and Mr. McCoy was Hank. Ororo was simply Ororo. Everyone had a nickname. Most everyone simply took it as his way of showing that he cared and was at ease with them. If he called you by your name, except for Ororo whom he apparently respected and cared for almost like a sister, then he was dead serious. Then again, it was possible that he was always serious with Ororo.

"Yeah, I feel like it," Jesse replies, "I just can't do nothing today. Even if you simply show me around better. I just need to do something to keep my mind occupied."

Logan nods in agreement. "If ya want something to do, I can run you through the beginnings of your physical training exercises. It will be tough, but you look like you can take it."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Jesse replies, knowing that from Logan that was a compliment, "I'll do my best. Whether that will be enough, we'll just have to wait and see."

After the other students had left for school, Jesse changes into a gi to practice in. Logan would start his hand-to-hand training first. After putting in the contacts, which he hated doing because he wasn't used to them, he walks out to the practice yard with Logan.

"So Specs, you ready?" Logan asks. Jesse nods. "Good. Then we'll start with a light kata. Just follow my movements as best you can. I'll go slow until you get it right."

Jesse began to protest that he didn't want to hinder Logan's own training, but Logan shuts him up. "Look, my job here is to teach you kids how to defend yourself. And I don't think a few weeks of cutting my exercises short will hurt me, especially if I'm still working out. Besides, if I have to I can just go through one of my specialized courses in the Danger Room."

This shut Jesse up immediately. He had heard of Logan's specialized Danger Room programs from Kurt. Supposedly it took the rest of the team combined to go through one of his scenarios, including the New Mutants. With a nod, Jesse and Logan start off.

Surprisingly, Jesse was able to catch on quickly. Logan suspected that a few of his relatives had had some martial arts training, one of them had fought in Vietnam after all, but he said nothing. He didn't want to bring the boy down. Logan sympathized with the boy. He had lost his family, yet he was willing to work past it and become stronger to make sure it didn't happen again. He had a sense of honor and dedication in him that Logan felt could be cultivated, that could turn Jesse into a man whom Logan could respect and gladly have watch his back. Someone who he could easily call friend.

Later that day, Jesse is talking with the Professor as they discuss his situation and his powers. Since it would take some time to gauge just how long it would take for him to gain control on his own. The Professor had strengthened the mental wards Jean had placed, but they wouldn't work forever. A year at best. Once that year was up, his powers would be able to just slip by any and all barriers placed on his mind by Jean or the Professor, even if they worked together to place them.

"Professor, do you honestly think I can completely control my powers within a year?" Jesse asks sullenly.

"No, Jesse, I do not," Professor Xavier replies, "but you will be able to control them well enough that they are not a danger unless your emotions go unchecked."

Jesse nods in acceptance. Then he brings up the question of his guardianship. His aunt, and her recently deceased husband, had been his legal guardians since he was three. But his aunt was now pretty much a vegetable and his uncle had been dead since the beginning of the year.

"You have nothing to worry about, Jesse," Professor Xavier says soothingly, "at the moment, you are in the custody of the state, and those that are working on your case know where you are. A problem lies in the fact that you aren't even seventeen yet, despite being a senior in high school."

"Yeah, lucky me," Jesse sighs, exasperated, "look, would it be possible for you to gain legal custody of me, at least until I'm 18 and of age? I'll be here until then anyway."

The Professor was obviously surprised at Jesse's request, and it showed. "May I ask why?"

"Things may end up happening where I will need a legal guardian or parental consent to do something or, Heaven forbid, get out of trouble," Jesse explains, "so I figured asking you. I would have possibly asked Logan, but I don't think he would find the gesture amusing and just refuse. You're the better option anyway."

"Logan would surprise you at that," the Professor replies, "but, I am glad that you have brought this matter to a close. You are old enough to have some say in your guardianship, so your word will help the proceedings go quicker."

"At least that's something," Jesse sighs.

"So how was your morning training with Logan?" the Professor asks.

"Surprisingly easy," Jesse replies, "too easy."

The Professor arches an eyebrow. "Logan went easy?"

"No, I don't think he did," Jesse replies, "I think one of my uncle's knew various martial arts. One of them was in Vietnam, after all."

The Professor nods sadly. "Jesse, I want you to understand that you are in a very unique situation. You have parts of several lifetimes worth of hard work and learning stored in your brain now. As time passes you will learn more and more about what you have gained, but I don't want you to try and use them as an easy way out."

"Of course not Professor," Jesse replies, "this is only the beginning. All this will end up doing is easing the physical training. I'll still have to train my body, but I won't have to work as hard to train my mind. The more I worked at something today that these memories were helping me along with, the more it seemed to become a part of who I am. I think I was integrating my uncle's experience into my own, making it my own instead of some kind of mental video recording in the first person perspective."

"I see," the Professor says, "I think I agree with you, but do be careful Jesse. Yours is a very precarious position. Your mind is still fragile from absorbing so much so quickly. If you are not careful, you could overtax yourself. There is no telling what could happen then. You could have a stroke, or slip into a coma."

"Thank you for your concern, Professor," Jesse says sincerely, "so, can we start on some more mental training for me?"

The Professor nods and they begin mental training exercises for Jesse to go through.

Later that day, Jesse was talking to Jean after she got back from school.

"Do the people at the school know that the students here at the Institute are mutants?" he asks.

"They know that some of us are," Jean replies, "and they probably suspect that the rest of us are as well."

"Is there fair treatment of mutants?" Jesse asks. He needed to know what to expect en he got to the school.

"Not always," Jean sighs, "they are particularly careful with me, since they know the nature of my powers."

"What do they do?" Jesse asks, knowing that they would do the same to him since he had powers similar to Jean's.

"Well, during tests and the like, they take me to the gym, since I can't read minds over a long distance very well," Jean replies, "I'd never cheat like that, or at all, but I go along with it since it gives them peace of mind."

"So those of us with mental powers have to sacrifice more than the rest, huh?" Jesse asks sadly.

"Not always," Jean replies, "they finally let me back on the school athletic teams since it takes focus to use my powers to cheat during a game."

A vision fills Jesse's head. A protesting Jean, in a soccer uniform, was demanding to know why the custodian was packing away the trophy's she had won for the school. He blinks. "They took away your trophy's?"

Jean looks quizzically at Jesse. How had he known that?

"I saw it in my head," he explains. He notices her look of understanding. "That did happen? How did I see it?"

"Two ways that I know of," Jean replies, "either you saw my memory."

"Unlikely, since I saw you in the vision as well," Jesse replies.

"Or you were able to see the past somehow," Jean says, "I guess you can see the past some."

"Yay me," Jesse mutters, "I guess I'll be able to see the future as well, huh?"

"Jesse, we don't know what you can and cannot do," Jean says soothingly, "you have dozens, maybe even hundreds, of different psionic powers. They aren't very strong, but they build off of one another and become stronger that way."

"The Professor and I think that I'm able to access my families memories," Jesse says, "I was able to do very well training with Logan today because one of my uncle's was in Vietnam and learned some martial arts."

"At least some of your training will be easy at first," Jean says with a small smile, "the rest of us have to slave away in his training sessions."

"Yeah, well, Logan said he'll up the level just for me," Jesse replies, then grimaces, "said he's gonna push me until he finds my limits, and then push me beyond."

"He does that with all of us," Jean replies, "he just wants us to be able to survive."

"Understandable," Jesse says, "after all, look at the common view of mutants. We're viewed disdainfully, not trusted. Given what some mutants can do, and will do, I don't blame normal humans of their fear."

"Jesse, what do you plan to do once you have gained control over your powers?" Jean asks.

"Get on with my life, most likely," Jesse replies, "my old family is gone, though I was never really close to any of them. I suppose I'll see about making a new family. Until then, I'll just take everything one day at a time. I hope I never have to use my powers to hurt another, but if I have to use them to protect someone, I will not hesitate."

"Do you think you might join the X-Men?" Jean asks.

"If I'm needed, I will help," Jesse promises.

"You know," Jean says as she stands up, "I think you're going to be a welcome addition around here, Jesse. You're a really nice guy."

"Mr. Nice Guy, that's me," Jesse chuckles as he stands up, "well, I have to meet Mr. McCoy and Logan in the Danger Room. Logan said he wanted to give me a practice run."

"Well, at least since its your first time he'll go easy on you," Jean says calmly. Jesse shivers.

"I dunno," Jesse replies, "like I said, I got memories from my uncle floating in my head giving me a slight advantage. He might up the level a bit."

"He still wouldn't put you at a very high level," Jean insists, "its still your first day. He has to put you at a lower level to get a feel for your skill level."

"Well, thanks for the talk Jean," Jesse says, "I'll talk to you later. Maybe you can give me some advice for some of my abilities."

"Sure," Jean says, beginning to focus on her homework as Jesse leaves.

The Danger Room, to Jesse's surprise, did not look all that dangerous. However, a few glances at the diagnostics of what it was capable of changed his mind about that very quickly.

"I'm going through this alone?" Jesse asks timidly.

"This is just the basic practice run," Logan replies, "even if you could use your powers, you wouldn't be allowed to unless they were inherent, like Kurt's agility and reflexes or my healing factor and bones."

"So, just some danger?" Jesse asks as he suits up in one of the basic X-Men uniforms. The outfit had absolutely no frills of any sort, unlike the personalized costumes of the more senior members of the team.

"Yes, that's why its called the Danger Room," Logan sighs, "now, I don't expect you to do as well here as you have so far today, but I do have the controls ready to boost the difficulty. The object is to find your limit and then make your limit harder to reach, to raise it until you have fewer and fewer limits."

"Sound plan," Jesse muses, "well, I guess I'm ready."

Jesse heads down to the Danger Room from the Control Room and gets ready. This was not going to be easy. Logan had upped the level just a bit, just for him.

The simulation started off simple enough, a maze, though it wasn't that complicated, since the Danger Room did have a limited size. Eventually he moved on to dodging moving objects such as metal beams. Logan put him through his paces, sending Jesse through every simulation the Danger Room could offer. It took three hours, but Logan finally felt that he had a good judge of Jesse's abilities. The boy had good balance, though he seemed to have little sense of self-preservation, taking great risks.

Jesse had leapt from platforms and such in dangerous gambits to get through the Danger Room's obstacles faster. He had nearly ended up with serious injuries, but had surprisingly come out without a scratch. Logan had seen potential in the boy. He wasn't violent, but Logan could tell that if push came to shove, Jesse could be fearsome. This was especially true because of his powers. When Jesse got them under control, he would be a terror if he ever lost it. Professor Xavier had called Logan in to talk to him after the other students had gotten in from school. They had discussed the kind of training Jesse would undergo. They had finally decided to focus on control until Jesse was capable of consciously controlling his abilities. Once that was done, they could focus on Jesse's physical training. They would still have Jesse undergo various aspects of physical training, like katas and basic exercises, but not as much as the other students. Logan had suggested allowing Jesse to train in a weapon and Xavier had agreed. Such training would give Jesse more focus, and a way to defend himself until he got his powers under control.

Days passed and Jesse quickly progressed in his basic training. He had mastered a new kata every day, and his training in learning control was progressing smoothly. Professor Xavier had told him that within another week he would be ready to go to Bayville High. Jesse had astounding control, largely due to the fact that he was naturally a withdrawn person. His desire to keep the disaster with his family from ever happening again also pushed him, though Professor Xavier and Logan were slightly worried that he might end up pushing himself too hard when he began making true progress once he started learning how to properly harness his abilities and not just keep them from going out of control.

Finally, Jesse's basic legal papers came through. Jesse's own word had indeed carried weight and Charles Xavier was now Jesse's temporary legal guardian until they could finalize everything with a trip back to Tennessee. His school papers had arrived and were sorted into Bayville, and Jesse had signed up for his classes. He had been keeping up with his studies, and would have classes with Jean and Scott, as well as a few of the other residents of the Xavier Institute. He had signed up for computer classes, as well as a musical class to keep his studies general. That and he liked singing He was taking automotive classes for the practical knowledge, and it gave him another class with Scott, who was taking the class for the same reasons.

During his short time at the Institute, Jesse had made a good friend in Kurt, the two of them becoming fast friends. Jesse did not care about Kurt's appearance, saying that you couldn't help the way you looked any more than you could help being born. Surprisingly, though, Jesse had become friends with the obstinate Rogue. While not close friends, he and Rogue had an understanding, which was more than anyone but Kurt really had with her besides Kitty, though Kitty was friends with everyone. He had also become a friend of Scott's, the only other male in the Institute that was real close to his age. He, Scott, Kurt, and Rogue could often be found in their free periods talking, sharing jokes and stories. When asked how the four of them got along so well by Kitty, Jesse's reply was simple yet profound.

"We all grew up adopted, Kitty," he had said, "while the circumstances for our adoptions were different, we share a common bond and feeling about that. Scott lost his parents and still has a brother. Kurt and myself do have mothers who are alive but were unable to raise us, though I do have a brother and a sister. Rogue is just simply adopted. But we all know what it is like to be raised by someone other than our parents. We share that, and let our common past bring us together. Now, are you hungry? Because I worked up an appetite running through the Danger Room for Logan."

Finally, it was time for Jesse's first day of school at Bayville High. He was nervous, but also excited. He had various classes with the older students at the Institute, and one or two with the younger students. He had one class with Kitty, which was Home Economics. Scott had teased him until Jesse replied that he needed to learn to cook. He had Language Arts IV with Jean, Rogue, and Scott, which was a required course. He had Algebra II with Kitty and Kurt. They were surprised that he was taking the class his senior year, but he had replied that he had felt like a break of math during his junior year. His fourth class was Phys. Ed., which he had with Scott, Jean, and Rogue, and his final class was History, which he only had with Rogue.

First period was Algebra II. Class had gone by smoothly, no mishaps whatsoever. Second period, Home Economics, hadn't gone over as well. Jesse had been paired with Kitty, and neither one of them were good cooks. They had ended up setting the brownies they had been making on fire and burning them to a crisp. Language Arts IV had gone smoothly. History was where he ran into problems.

The class had started out all right. The teacher, Mr. Smithers, was completely anti-mutant, and made no attempt to hide it. If Jesse didn't have the habit of letting slander that was directed at him go by, he probably would have blown up just as bad as he had at the family reunion. As it was, since the remarks were directed at all mutants, Jesse had to sit through class uncomfortably. He had tried to adopt Rogue's impassive features, but he just wasn't able to. Instead, he managed to look bored, which Mr. Smithers zeroed in on right away.

"So, bored already, on your first day here?" he demands sharply.

"No sir," Jesse replies monotonously, "this is my usual facial expression."

Mr. Smithers studied Jesse's face for a moment, as if trying to detect the lie. After a moment, Mr. Smithers returns to the front of the class and returns to the lesson. The rest of the lesson passed by fairly easily, with Mr. Smithers glancing at Jesse repeatedly to determine if he had been telling the truth. At the end of class, Mr. Smithers held Jesse back. Rogue waited for him, since they were riding together with Scott and Jean back to the Institute.

"Mr. Atalas, you had best shape up in my class or I'll be forced to recommend that you transfer to another class," Mr. Smithers warns, "do you understand?"

"Yes sir," Jesse replies, keeping that same bored expression on his face.

"Now, I understand that you are living at the Xavier Institute?" Mr. Smithers asks.

"Yes sir," Jesse replies.

"You understand that everyone there is a freak and a mutant, right?" Mr. Smithers asks, the loathing evident in his voice.

"I've heard rumors," Jesse answers, "but I don't pay attention to rumors. They're a waste of time, breath, and intelligence."

"Well, the rumors are true," Mr. Smithers sneers, "and I must assume that you are a mutant as well, if you are staying there."

"Sir, Professor Xavier was a friend of my family's, and when they passed away a month ago he gained custody of me," Jesse replies, "and besides, you do know what happens when you assume something, right?"

With that, Jesse turned and joined Rogue as they head for where Scott's car was parked.

"How did you get the school board to accept your legal name as Rogue?" Jesse asks.

"Mystique, she was the Principal before Principal Kelly," Rogue answers, "she pulled strings and in this state my legal name is Rogue."

"What's your real name, then?" Jesse asks.

"It's, well," Rogue stammers.

"It's okay, you don't have to tell me Rogue," Jesse says, "it doesn't matter to me if I know your real name or not."

"Thanks," Rogue says.

"So, what do you think of Scott and Jean?" Jesse asks as they spot the couple leaning against Scott's car.

"They make a perfect couple," Rogue says grumpily.

"Is that jealousy I detect in your voice?" Jesse teases, "does someone have a crush on Scott?"

"Ah did," Rogue admits, a blush staining her cheeks, "it went away last year, when Scott and ah went to New York to locate Warren."

"I take it you liked him for the obvious reasons?" Jesse asks, "good looking, nice guy?"

Rogue nods. "And ah'd gotten to know him, ya know? We share a kinda similar background."

"So do we," Jesse says, "I take it Scott had no clue?"

"He's like a brother to me now," Rogue says, "and so are you and Kurt."

"Kurt is your brother," Jesse points out, "its just he's blue and furry and your… not."

Rogue smiles and the pair finish the walk to Scott's car.

"So, what'd you think of your first day?" Scott asks as they get into the car.

"Except for History, it wasn't too bad," Jesse admits, "Mr. Smithers is a bigot, isn't he?"

"Yes he is," Jean says emphatically, "I have him first period and he's just awful to me."

"He was pretty mean to Rogue as well," Jesse says, "he jumped on me the first chance he got."

"That's because you looked bored," Rogue points out.

"I wasn't bored, I was trying to look as impassive as you," Jesse counters, "that was the result."

"Did he ask if you were a mutant?" Jean asks.

"Yes, but I lied a little," Jesse admits, "told him the Professor was a friend of the family who got custody of me when they passed away."

"Wise move," Scott says, "I had him last year and he was downright evil. He's rude to all of the students from the Institute, especially those of us who have openly revealed ourselves to being mutants, and he does nothing to stop other students from harassing us."

"Guess I really had best keep a low profile," Jesse murmurs.

"You're not ashamed of being a mutant, are ya?" Rogue asks.

"No, I'm not," Jesse answers truthfully, "I just don't need to catch any more flack than I will for just being the new guy. I already had to avoid some jocks on that issue."

"They may have been testing you to see if you had any powers," Scott remarks as he pulls the car out onto the road to the Institute.

"Could be," Jesse admits, "not like anything can happen unless I really lose it."

"At least until you learn to control your powers yourself," Jean adds, "the Professor and I will take down the barriers once you develop a fair amount of control, otherwise the barriers will just slow your development."

Jesse sighs. "Well, at least it'll be a while before that happens."

"Have some faith in yourself, Jesse," Scott assures the younger teen, "you just need to practice. Jean didn't think she could ever control her powers, but now her control rival's the Professors"

Jean blushes. "Yeah. If I can get my powers under control, you can do the same Jesse."

"Thanks for the confidence," Jesse smiles, "well, if nothing else I have something to shoot for. Just gotta keep a never-say-die attitude, right?"

"That's the spirit!" Jean cheers.

The four mutants continue their conversation up to the Institute, where they then go off to quickly finish up their homework then get on to training. Today Jean would be helping Logan train Jesse. Jesse had been improving in his focusing and control, and now Professor Xavier and Logan felt that he could perhaps learn to harness one of his more obvious abilities, telekinesis.

"You start by directing your focus at the object you want to levitate," Jean explains, "in this case, this beach ball. Its best to use something soft when learning to harness telekinesis."

"Well, we can give it a try," Jesse says, "what do you want me to do?"

"Just levitate the ball," Jean says, "we'll see how long you can hold it up. Then we'll work on moving it around."

Jesse nods and focuses. He sees the beach ball in his minds eye. The colors, the contours, he could see every aspect of the ball in his mind. Even the seams in the multi-colored ball that held it together. He could see the spigot to blow air into the ball, and let the air out. Focusing harder, he could even see the very molecules that made up the ball, and the bonds that held them together. With a gasp Jesse opens his eyes.

"What is it Jesse?" Jean asks, concern etched in her features.

"I saw…. everything about the ball," Jesse whispers, but loud enough for Jean and Logan to hear him, "I could see everything the ball contained, and even the very molecules that make up the ball. Its unreal."

"I think you honestly do have the Sight," Jean says, "you can See into any object if you concentrate. This could ease your training though, since its instinctual. And it'll make you appear even more powerful."

"Instead of using strength pushing aside something hurtling towards me, like say a rock, I could focus on the very molecules that make it up and shatter the bonds that hold them together," Jesse realizes, "not the molecules themselves, but what holds the molecules in their form!"

"It'll take a lot of practice, but I believe you can do it," Jean says sincerely, "for now, see if you can lift the ball."

Jesse nods and turns his attention to the beach ball once more. A little push and it slowly begins to float off the ground. He levitates the beach ball until it is level with his head, then gives it a push right at Jean's head. Jean stops it instantly with her own telekinesis.

"So you wanna move right on into the next lesson, do you?" Jean asks, a playful smile on her face, "then deal with this!"

Jean uses her telekinesis to push the beach ball back at Jesse, who loses his grip on the ball and ducks to avoid being hit. Jean sends the ball up into the air then brings it down softly onto Jesse's head. Jesse gives off a short grunt as the ball makes contact. He focuses and launches the beach ball back at Jean, who stops it again and sends it right back. This time Jesse is able to divert it with a quick push of telekinesis, sending the beach ball to his right.

"Have you been practicing any?" Jean asks as she brings the beach ball around and sends it at Jesse again, "you shouldn't be able to do this well so quickly."

Jesse pushes the ball up with his telekinesis, the all brushing against his hair as it skims over his head. "I have been practicing some in my room. Using some clothes I'd say I've done pretty well."

"How long have you been practicing?" Jean asks as she brings the ball around for another go.

"About a week now," Jesse replies as this time he grabs the ball mid-air with his telekinesis and pushes it at Logan, catching the unsuspecting X-Man in the face. Jean stifles a giggle as she watches Logan pick up the ball.

"Specs, I advise you to run," Logan says seriously before tossing the beach ball to Jean. Jesse gulps and takes off.

"You're not gonna hurt him, are you Logan?" Jean asks.

"Nah, just spook him a little," Logan smirks, "are you surprised that he started practicing early?"

Jean shakes her head. "Not really. He does want to get his powers under control, so that plays a big factor in his decisions. But I don't think he'll take any risks. He's already seen the damage that could cause. He might, _might_, have risked it when he was here while everyone else was at school, but I don't think he would have."

"He's too conscious of the danger," Logan agrees, "once he starts getting better, it might slow him down when he sees what he can consciously do."

"Then you'll just have to help him get through that," Jean says.

"Me!" Logan demands.

"Yes, you," Jean answers, "everyone can see how much he looks up to you. It's almost the way Kitty looks up to you. Like a big brother, or maybe an uncle. Don't worry, you won't be alone. After all, Scott and Rogue can help, and so can I. We all have experiences with uncontrollable powers, and the damage we can cause."

Logan nods in acceptance, then runs off after Jesse, a hunter after his prey. Jean privately wondered what Logan would do to Jesse. Jesse wouldn't enjoy it, that was for sure.

That night at dinner, Jesse was a bit surly from having been thrown into the swimming pool a total of eight times. Logan would throw him in, let him crawl out and run off, then drag him back and thrown in again. The other students had wisely avoided him except for Rogue, Scott, and Kurt. The four of them were almost inseparable outside of class and lessons at the Institute. They even stayed up talking late into the evening on weekends, and Scott helped Jesse with physical training exercises with someone closer to Jesse's own build and experience. Of course, Scott was still in better condition than Jesse, but it gave Jesse a chance to actually use the training Logan was giving him on someone who couldn't bounce back immediately and hit you far harder than you had hit them if you didn't do the maneuver exactly right.

Breakfast the next day was a hectic affair as usual. Jesse tried not to use his telekinesis, as he wasn't sure if he trusted it enough to not hurt someone just yet. That changed, however, when Logan grabbed the last apple right as Jesse was reaching for it.

"Hey, that was mine!" Jesse protests.

"Tough luck Specs," Logan says as he slices off a piece of the apple with one of the kitchen knives. He wasn't in the mood for the girls to scold him about his claws being unhygienic today.

Jesse narrows his eyes and focuses. The apple flies out of Logan's hand and into his own. Jesse was surprised at first that it worked, but grinned like an idiot when the others congratulate him about getting it right. Jean and Kitty's complements made him blush and he hurried out of the kitchen, having finished with the rest of his breakfast, to gather his school supplies.

"I can't believe you did that to Mr. Logan!" Kitty exclaims as the two of them head for Scott's car. Jesse, Jean, and Kitty were riding with Scott in the mornings since Rogue was practicing driving the X-Van to school, carrying a lot of the younger students of the Institute to wherever they were heading.

"Well, you should have seen what he did to me last night," Jesse grumbles as he opens the car door for Kitty.

"What'd he do?" Kitty asks, "and what did you do to make him do it?"

"Hey, why does it have to be me who instigated the incident!" Jesse protests.

"Because, Mr. Logan wouldn't do anything without being provoked first," Kitty replies smugly, "well, except against Sabretooth, but no one's really sure who started things between them."

"Fine," Jesse grumbles, "Jean and I were practicing my telekinesis last night and I hit him in the face with a beach ball."

Kitty puts a hand to her mouth and giggles. "And what did he do to you in return?"

"Threw me in the pool," Jesse answers, "then he let me crawl out, run off a bit then he'd hunt me down and do it again. I got dunked eight times!"

"No wonder you're so surly," Kitty notes.

"Me, surly?" Jesse asks with mock hurt, "surely you jest, fair lady!"

"You, Jesse Atalas, are a scamp!" Kitty retorts.

"But a gentlemanly scamp," Jesse replies mock pompously. Kitty shakes her head and smiles. At least he was no longer dwelling on his family. That was a good thing, though he'd need to come to terms with it someday.

"Yes, a gentlemanly scamp," Kitty agrees, "but definitely a scamp."

"oi, it's not 'Pick on Jesse Day', is it?" Jesse asks as Jean and Scott get into the car.

"No silly, that's tomorrow!" Kitty laughs. Jesse just shakes his head as Scott drives the four of them to school.

Jesse's second day at Bayville High turned out to be a lot better than the first. Some of the jocks still hounded him, but he avoided them by staying in large groups. Scott had advised him to stay in a crowd, since the jocks didn't want their reputations ruined by bullying someone out in the open.

History was, once again, a trying time for Jesse, even though Mr. Smithers largely ignored him, choosing instead to focus on Rogue. It was tough, fighting the urge to just jump up and knock some sense into this man, but he managed it. It wouldn't do to get thrown out of school on his second day.

After class, Jesse joined Rogue and Kitty at Scott's car. Jean was staying after school for soccer practice and Logan would be picking her up on his way back from checking out movement from Magneto's Acolytes. Sabretooth had been spotted creating a series of fires. Whether the bestial mutant was working under Magneto's orders or on his own, Logan was planning on stopping him, any way he could. He was personally hoping that his nemesis would choose the hard way. Not many of the X-Men who had seen Sabretooth disagreed. Jean herself had simply said "Try not to cause too much damage this time."

As they arrived at the Institute, they found Professor Xavier waiting for them.

"Jesse, may I speak with you alone?"

"Of course Professor," Jesse replies, "Rogue, I'll meet up with you later to work on the History homework, okay?"

"Sure thing," Rogue answers as she heads up to her room.

Jesse walks beside Professor Xavier, his backpack slung over a single shoulder, the two of them heading for the Professor's office.

"Yes Professor?" Jesse asks as he sits down in one of the comfortable chairs in Xavier's office/study.

"So Jesse, tell me how school has been so far," Charles Xavier asks calmly.

"Well, most of the classes are alright," Jesse begins, "but History is trying. The teacher, while good at what he does, is completely anti-mutant."

"Has he been giving you a hard time for staying here?"

"No, he only questioned me yesterday," Jesse answers, "today he just tried to bait Rogue. Luckily she's too smart to fall for it."

"But you almost weren't," Xavier says. It was a statement, not a question.

"I was more angry with the bigotry than at him," Jesse answers honestly, "I just wanted him to shut up and teach, not go on about how _normal_ people had worked hard throughout history. Ha! What if some of the most prominent figures in history were, in fact, mutants?"

Professor Xavier chuckles. "Indeed. Jesse, I know I don't have to stress how important it is for you to keep your emotions in check. Your powers are so varied that Jean and I could not ward them all. If you became too angry, they could easily erupt the way they did before."

Jesse gulps. "I understand sir. It'll take more than a bigot to get me to lose my cool. But to be on the safe side I think I'll join Jean in her meditative katas."

"That would be a good idea," Professor Xavier says.

"Well sir, I'd better hurry if I'm to join Jean," Jesse says as he stands up.

Jean's meditative kata was one of the most intricate and difficult kata's Jesse had tried so far. He did make mistakes, the kata was far above his skill level despite the intense training Logan had been giving him in such kata's. When he was done, he went to find Rogue so they could work on the History assignment together.

"Ah'll never get this!" Rogue mutters angrily as she glares at the question.

"Which one is it?" Jesse asks.

"Question nine, "List the youngest of the first six Greek gods and goddesses," Rogue replies.

"ah, the easy one," Jesse chuckles.

"You call that easy?" Rogue glares.

"For me, yes, considering that I used to love reading Greek myths," Jesse replies, "the answer was Zeus."

"But wasn't he the king of the Greek gods?" Rogue asks, bewildered.

"He was, but it was foretold to Cronos, his father, that one of his children would topple him and replace him as the ruler of the Heavens, as he did with his father," Jesse explains, "so he swallowed them whole as soon as they were born. His wife, Rhea, hid Zeus when he was born and fooled her brother into devouring a stone."

"Wait, her brother?" Rogue's tone was disbelieving.

Jesse chuckles. "Yeah, there's a LOT of stuff like that in Greek mythology. Hera, Zeus' wife, is his sister and she married him out of shame when he surprised her one day and raped her."

"That's, um, more than ah needed, or wanted, tah know," Rogue says weakly.

Jesse laughs. "Yeah, I think it's a bit much myself. But what can I say, I love mythology, especially Greek mythology."

"Okay, next question," Rogue says, "'which Greek hero was the son of Zeus: Perseus or Heracles?' Huh? Who is Heracles?"

"He's more commonly known by the name he has in Roman mythology," Jesse answers, "its Hercules, and that one is a trick question. Both Perseus and Heracles were sons of Zeus."

"Zeus certainly got around, didn't he?" Rogue comments.

"That he did," Jesse agrees, "several of the other major gods and goddesses were his children. Ares, Hermes, Apollo, Dionysus, Hephaestus, and Artemis were all children of Zeus' by various women. Aphrodite was his adopted daughter."

"Okay, final question: 'Which Greek hero slew the minotaur?'" Rogue asks.

"That would be Theseus," Jesse replies as he finishes up his homework, "well, that's it, isn't it? Wanna go join Scott and Kurt? They should be about done with practicing in the Danger Room with Rahne and Jubilee."

"Sure," Rogue smiles, "lets go."

"So, you two got the Terror Teacher's homework done?" Scot asked when he spotted the two of them.

"Aw, it was easy," Jesse jokes, "Rogue here though was hopeless."

"I was not!" Rogue protests, elbowing Jesse gently in the ribs, "I didn't need your help until question nine, and there were only eleven!"

"I was just teasing, you know," Jesse replies with mock hurt.

"Come on guys, the basketball court is open," Scott says, "care for a game of two on two, no powers?"

"If Rogue is, sure," Jesse says, "I'll be on her team."

Rogue looks at Jesse in surprise. Usually when they played two on two, Kurt would be on her team, since he was her brother. Using no powers, Jesse and Scott would normally win, due to their height. She and Kurt were more agile, especially Kurt, but Jesse and Scott had discovered themselves to be an excellent team.

"What?" Jesse asks, noticing Rogue's surprise, "I just thought it'd be nice to have teams that were more even."

Rogue, after thinking for a moment, nods and smiles faintly. "Sure. Basketball sounds fun."

It was a close game. Scott was a little taller than Jesse and had a longer reach, and Kurt was far more agile than Rogue, and the two of them already knew how to work as a team. Not to mention they were more athletic than Jesse was. But, Rogue knew how Kurt's mind worked, and Jesse was a little quicker than Scott in short distance. In the end, Scott and Kurt won the game 21-19, with Kurt managing a slam dunk from a pass from Scott.

"Great game, Jesse," Scott says, clapping the younger teen on the shoulder, "you two almost had us."

"Well, we did give it our all," Jesse replies, "those three pointers you scored just simply outdid us."

Scott nods and her and Kurt head for their rooms to clean up while Jesse and Rogue, as the losers, put away the equipment.

"That was a good game, Jesse," Rogue says, "too bad we lost."

"Hey, we'll get 'em next time," Jesse says cheerfully, "we just need more practice as a team. Once we get into a proper teamwork groove, we'll cream 'em!"

"Jesse, why did you wanna team up with me?" Rogue asks suddenly.

"Well, to tell the truth, I wanted the match-up to be more even," Jesse answers, "basketball's no fun if the game's one-sided."

"Well, the only time someone ever came close to beating Scott and Kurt until just now was when Evan was here," Rogue admits, "though Mr. McCoy can do just as well as Kurt at times."

"I imagine he can," Jesse agrees before sighing, "well, I'd best hurry and join Jean for some more practice. She says I'm a quick study in telekinesis, and that I may have it mastered by the end of the month."

"That's great!" Rogue says encouragingly, "I still have a bit of algebra to do."

"Okay," Jesse says, "well, I'll catch ya later Rogue."

"It's Marie," Rogue says as Jesse starts to walk off.

"What?" Jesse asks, bewildered.

"My name," Rogue repeats, "its Marie."

-

So, what'd you think? I appreciate the reviews, and I hope all of you who reviewed are still reading. This still will be slowly written, but the sequel is mostly planned. Or, at least, I know what I want to happen. I tend to let my stories write themselves, which is why some of them have not been updated in so long. The sequel will be a crossover and I plan on giving subtle hints throughout the story. First person to guess what it is a crossover with will get some kind of cameo appearance in the sequel. Not sure what kind, we'll have to wait and see what happens.

Please review and tell me what you think.


	3. Encounters with a New Enemy

Disclaimer: I do not own X-Men: Evolution. Currently I only own Jesse.

Review responses at the bottom. I'll also admit to reading some various writing guides while writing the last ten or so pages of this story. Lemme know if you can notice any improvement.

"Talking"

"_talking over phone_"

'thinking'

'_telepathy_'

This chapter was re-edited on 6/11/05.

-

A week had passed since Jesse had started school back up. With Scott and Jean's help he had caught up in his studies and was now at the level he was supposed to be. Classes, particularly history, were coming easier to him now. At times he figured that some memories from his family were seeping through the barriers, giving him the knowledge, but he was minding less and less. He was still saddened by it, but he was enjoying life at the Institute. Rogue, or Marie as she allowed him to call her by her real name when it was just the two of them, joined him in helping to sort out those memories. She had more experience with it than even Professor Xavier, since she had lived it. She was able to give Jesse keen insight on how to mentally, and emotionally, deal with the oncoming problem, and in turn was able to help bolster her own emotional support.

So far Jesse had had little contact with the members of the Brotherhood except for Lance, or Avalanche as he was sometimes called, who hung out with Kitty a lot at school. The two of them got on well, and he seemed to be an okay guy, if a bit rebellious. He had only seen Fred Dukes, or Blob, from a distance (which wasn't that hard), and had only smelled Todd Tolansky, or Toad (which also wasn't that hard). Pietro, or Quicksilver, he had yet to meet and Pietro's sister Wanda, or Scarlet Witch, he tried to avoid after some advice from Rogue. The Acolytes, Magneto's direct henchmen who answered only to him, had yet to show themselves again. They had not been seen since the battle with Apocalypse.

Jesse's training was progressing smoothly. He was now training in using a sword. Logan was training him in using various double-edged swords, though he preferred a late Norm-style sword. Three days after he began his training with a sword, a package arrived in the mail for Jesse, though it had no return address. It was a Norman-style sword made out of adamantium. The hand guard was basic, extending just far enough to do its job. The blade had no frills, and seemed far lighter than it should have been from what Logan said. However, it was perfectly balanced for Jesse. Uncannily balanced.

"You're getting good with that," Logan comments as he parries another of Jesse's strikes with his own sword. He was ideal for sword training. Not only did Logan's accelerated healing ability minimize risk, his adamantium skeleton made it so that it would be extremely hard to deliver a fatal blow by accident, even when facing a sword made of adamantium. Logan's bones themselves were coated with the stuff, and as far as anyone knew adamantium was the strongest metal around. It also meant that it would be very difficult for him to lose even a finger, much less a limb.

"I have a good teacher," Jesse replies as he thrusts, aiming for Logan's heart. Logan parries again, this time moving in and kneeing Jesse in the gut. The younger mutant doubles over as the air leaves his lungs. He stumbles back, trying to stay on guard. Logan moves in swiftly, delivering a sharp series of precision strikes that Jesse fails to block as Logan sends his sword flying.

"And you're dead," Logan says evenly as he rests the tip of his sword against Jesse's neck, "you're getting better, Specs. You lasted five full minutes this time."

"Yeah, but I'll never be able to beat you," Jesse sighs as Logan sheathes his sword.

"Listen Specs, I've had decades of experience at this," Logan explains, "you've only been training for a week. You got some natural talent, real natural talent, and with some good hard work you could be really good."

"Yeah, just too bad that you can't make a life out of being a swordsman these days," Jesse jokes, "I mean, its not like you're teaching me to use a foil where I could be an Olympic fencer. Not that I could, being a mutant. My powers could theoretically give me an unfair advantage."

Logan nods in understanding. Jesse had yet to decide what he wanted to do with his life, and worried about it often. "Don't worry Specs. You'll find something eventually. Just give it time. If nothing else you could always stick around here to teach."

"Yeah, I guess I could," Jesse agrees, "though I can't see myself as a teacher, ever. It would be nice though. To have a purpose beyond mastering my gifts."

"Know what ya mean," Logan remarks as Jesse goes to retrieve his sword, "I can't really remember a lot of my past, thanks to those bastards who gave me these claws."

"Well, even if you can't remember your origins, its not like you don't have a home here," Jesse says as he sheathes his sword, "am I right?"

Logan chuckles. "Yeah, you're right kid. This is a good place. I'm glad Charles asked me to come and help teach."

"What were you doing before you came to the Institute?" Jesse asks. He had asked Scott, Kurt, and Rogue this question, but none of them knew a thing. They barely knew anything about Logan. Kitty perhaps knew the most about him.

"Just drifting," Logan answers, surprising Jesse, "I'd go where I wanted. I usually did manual labor, such as working on the docks of seaports."

Jesse nods. "Doesn't sound like a bad way of life, if you can't decide on anything else."

Logan nods in agreement. "I'd probably still be doing that if Charles hadn't contacted me."

The rest of the day passed easily. Jesse had already swung into the groove of life in Bayville, and he was becoming cheerful. He was happy now. His life was more exciting, unlike it had been back home, and he had more friends now than he had ever had in his entire life.

"_So things are going well_?" It was Friday and Jesse was talking to Locke over the phone.

"Yeah man, things are going great," Jesse replies, "my training is going splendidly. Jean thinks that a few more weeks and we might be able to progress into exploring what I can do with my telepathy."

"_That's good, right_?" Locke asks.

"Jean says its unexpected, but good," Jesse answers, "I have a good grasp on how to control my powers. With even just a little training, most mutants can manage some fairly moderate control over their powers, depending on their own mental strength and the strength of their powers."

"_And since your powers rely on mental strength_," Jesse could hear the grin in Locke's voice.

"I'm coming across as a bit of a natural," Jesse finishes, "I have to focus, but it appears that I can do a lot if I put my mind to it."

"_Like the saying goes, you can do anything if you just put your mind to it_," Locke chuckles, "_only in your case that can be taken literally_."

"More than you know man," Jesse says, "when Jean first started helping me with my telekinesis, I somehow saw the very bonds that held the beach ball together. All I had to do was apply a little pressure and I could have taken it apart at the molecular level."

The line was silent for a moment before Locke continued. "_That sounds dangerous. You sure you're doing fine_?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Jesse says to assure his friend, "Jean and Professor Xavier tell me that I'm coming along nicely. Come Christmas they say that I should be safe under my own power and they'll remove the barriers they have in place."

"_Well then, it sounds like you're happy where you are_," Locke says.

"Yeah, I think I am," Jesse says, "Scott and Kurt are great, and Rogue's awesome."

"_What's this_?" Locke teases, "_Jesse Atalas,_ _becoming friends with a _girl?"

Jesse blushes faintly. "Oh hush you! It's not like that. Rogue and I, we just have a lot in common."

Jesse's voice softens. "Her power, she takes in a part of the person she touches. It stays with her forever. She can lessen the influence each piece has on her, but its always there. Like me, she has parts of the minds of others in her, including many people she cares about."

"_Hey man, I was just teasing_," Locke says apologetically, "_I meant nothing by it. So, have you called your mom yet?_"

Jesse sighs. "No. Too scared."

"_Of her reaction? Dude, you gotta call her. Does she even know that her mother has passed away?"_

"Yeah, she knows Grandma's dead, but she couldn't make it for the funeral," Jesse replies.

"_Well man, you're gonna have to talk to her sometime_," Locke says, "_the sooner the better._"

"Yeah, but I just can't tell her something like this over the phone," Jesse says, "it has to be in person. Come Christmas I'll be allowed to go and visit her. I'll tell her then."

"_When are you coming to visit us_?" Locke asks.

"In two weeks," Jesse replies, "the Professor is finalizing the papers to gain custody of me and it's my birthday too so I'll be able to visit everyone."

"_Great! We'll see you then. Everyone here misses you._"

"That's a surprise," Jesse chuckles.

"_Come on, man, even if you didn't get a long with a lot of the people in the youth group we're still your friends,_" Locke admonishes, "_even Katie misses you._"

"Katie misses me?" Jesse scoffs, "she misses throwing things at me! Oh well. Listen man, I gotta go. Its time for my next session with Logan and Jean."

"_Okay man. Good luck. Take care._"

"Same to you Locke." With that, Jesse hangs up the phone and goes out for his training session with Jean and Logan. Today they were going to explore his strange ability to see the very molecular bonds that held a few items together, and see what he could do to them.

Seeing the very bonds that held all matter together, as it turned out, was rather easy for Jesse to do. It was almost second nature for him. However, he couldn't apply the fine amount of pressure needed to do anything to the bonds. If too much was applied, then the damage created could be catastrophic. Not enough, then at the least the bonds would be weakened. If weakened enough then over time they could dissolve at the worst possible moment. So they had opted to wait until he had better mastery over his telekinesis before trying anything.

That night as Jesse slept, he dreamed uneasily. He saw people fighting and dying. He saw a veritable monster of a man, most likely a mutant, in purple armor with an "A" embossed on the belt. He could see the dead bodies of various X-Men and other students of the Institute lying dead at that same mutant's feet. Beside the large mutant stood another mutant in armor with some kind of energy weapon attached to one of his arms. He saw a much older version of himself, fighting alongside a man with long brown hair with white locks at the top of his forehead. The both of them were battered and bloody, exhausted from battle. They both rushed their two adversaries one last time only for Jesse himself to be cut down by a blast from the mutant with the energy weapon.

Jesse awakens with a start. What was that? The memories of the dream were quickly fading from his mind. Was that the future? Or was it just a nightmare. He slowly goes back to sleep, but once again his dreams are filled with death and ruin. All that he can remember when he wakes up is an all-encompassing green light.

The next day, which was fortunately a Saturday, Jesse felt miserable during the morning. He had slept restlessly, his nightmares keeping him from fully appreciating the seven hours of asleep he had gotten. Even the Professor and Jean hadn't been able to help him sort out what he had dreamed, or even see what he had seen. Because of this, they told him that it was probably just a dream. His second dream, the one he had when he went back to sleep, they could discern absolutely nothing from it, as not even Jesse remembered anything from it.

The day was bright and sunny, a wonderful day to tell the truth. Jesse was out with Scott, Kurt, Jean, and Rogue on a trip to one of the nearby beaches for a day out. The Professor had okayed the trip, in fact he had encouraged it. Jean and Jesse had been working hard at training Jesse to use his powers and Professor Xavier felt that they deserved a break.

So they went to the beach. Jesse had never been to one before in his life, so he was looking forward to it. Kurt and Rogue were slightly anxious. The last time they had gone to a beach the Brotherhood had attacked them. That was just before the Asteroid M debacle, which was over a year ago. Of course, their worries didn't dampen Jesse's excitement at all. He was looking forward to getting in a water war with Jean, both of them using telekinesis to splash the other. Of course, Jean would also have Scott to help her but Jesse had the support of Kurt and Rogue.

As they pull up to the beach, they find it empty, which suited them just find. Everyone had already changed into their swimsuits since there wasn't a place for them to change. Kurt quickly places a hand on Scott and Jean's shoulder.

"Kurt?" Scott asks.

"Kurt, don't you dare!" Jean yells before he teleports the three of them ten feet above the water a decent distance out. The three of them begin to fall but Kurt just teleports back to the beach, leaving Scott and Jean to hit the water with a large splash.

Scott and Jean come up spluttering, the both of them glaring at the blue-furred mutant. The glare intensifies when they see Jesse and Kurt high-five one another.

"That's it, they are so dead," Jean splutters, coughing up water.

"Let's get out of the water first," Scott suggests, "then we can get them."

"Ya'll do know that Scott and Jean are gonna get their revenge, don't ya?" Rogue asks the two boys.

"Ja, ve know," Kurt responds.

"But we did it anyway," Jesse chuckles.

Rogue shakes her head. She grins evilly. "Ah'm gonna enjoy watching this."

"Um, Kurt," Jesse says worriedly, "how much of a vindictive streak would you say Jean has?"

Kurt blinks and gulps. "Maybe that wasn't such a good idea."

"Ya think?" Jesse asks as he spots Scott and Jean pulling themselves out of the surf.

"Do you think ve could run fast enough?" Kurt asks.

"Doubt it," Jesse replies, "and Scott's our ride home. I don't fancy teleporting repeatedly to get back."

Kurt nods in agreement. The two friends sigh and await their punishment.

later-

Jesse and Kurt actually got off lightly, since it had been in fun. They just had to wash the X-jet and X-Van every day for the next week. After they unloaded the car of their beach supplies they all dove out into the surf. Jesse and Jean developed a game with their telekinesis of seeing how large a sphere of water they could maintain. Of course, they were keeping the spheres away from their friends, but it was still fun. After about an hour of doing this, Jesse grins and levitates some water up above Jean, dropping it down on her. She lets out a cry of protest before getting a dangerous glint in her eyes. The next thing Jesse knew he was splashed on all sides by water.

"Okay, this is war!" Jesse calls out before pushing a small wave directly at Jean. Jean gasps as the wave sends her under for a few moments. She comes up spluttering.

"Scott!" Jean calls out. Scott, seeing what Jesse and Jean were doing, hurries off into the water to help his girlfriend in the water war. Kurt and Rogue exchange grins before barreling into the water to help Jesse. Before long the five of them are engaged in a fierce water fight, with only Jesse and Jean using their powers.

Getting a fit of inspiration, Jesse begins to focus his telekinesis underwater. Jean could feel him trying something, but she couldn't figure out what. Her questions are answered a moment later when the water around her practically explodes, columns of water rushing upwards from all around her and Scott. A split second later the columns tilt over towards them and the water comes crashing down, sending Jean and Scott under. They come up spluttering, looking at Jesse in disbelief.

"Well, I guess I really do have some good control already," Jesse muses. Kurt nods in agreement.

Later, the fivesome were packing their things back up. Jean was talking animatedly with Jesse about his strength in telekinesis. She wasn't sure if he had a lot of power in his telekinesis or if some of his other powers were boosting it, but it would be interesting to explore.

As they are about to get in the car a golden yellow beam rips into the ground in front of it. The four X-Men and the New Mutant turn to face the direction of where the blast had come from. Standing there is a group of four people, two men and two women, in red and white costumes (think what Omega Red wears if you can). One man had black hair streaked with blue done in a military cut. He was rough looking. His eyes were a crimson color that seemed to glow as he stared at Jesse and the others. On the chest of his uniform is a white dot encircled in black. He stood to be about 6' 3".

The two women were nearly identical with long black hair. One woman had different colored eyes, her left eye being a molten red and her right eye being an icy blue. On the chest of her uniform was a icy blue dot the same color as her right eye encircled by a red ring the same color as her left eye. The other woman had golden yellow eyes that were glowing with power, the same power that had struck the ground in front of the car. On the chest of her uniform was a yellow sunburst pattern. They both stood to be about 5' 4".

The other man was a lot shorter. He stood at about 4' 2" and was stockily built. His black hair was cropped short in a military fashion. Black eyes gazed upon the five teens as a shimmering blue field aura surrounds him. On the chest of his uniform is a solid blue circle.

"Who are you?" Scott demands.

"We're Musu," the tall man responds, "you can call me Hakai."

"Dual Blast," says the woman with the different-colored eyes.

"Solari," says the other woman, obviously Dual Blast's twin.

"Just call me Blaster," the short man cackles.

"Whaddya want?" Jesse asks cautiously.

"We're here to test you," Hakai replies, "you had best defend yourselves at the peak of your abilities."

With that, Hakai pushes his right arm towards them. A swirl of whiteness forms in front of his hands before shooting forth. The mutant teens leap out of the way as the concussion blast hits where Jesse had just been standing. Scott rolls to a kneeling position and clicks the button on his visor, which he was wearing today because it was easier in the water than his normal glasses. The ruby red beam lances out at Hakai but is intercepted by a golden yellow beam from Solari. Solari grins predatorily.

"You'll have to do better than that, Cyclops," she says before firing another blast from her eyes at Scott, who counters with an optic blast of his own.

Meanwhile, Kurt is using his agility to avoid molten red beams from Dual Blast's left eye. Wherever the beams strike leaves behind melted sand, leaving Kurt to resolve that he would NOT get hit by one of them. He is taken by surprise by an icy blue beam from Dual Blast's right eye, but Kurt's reflexes save him. The beam hits the water, freezing a fair portion of it. Kurt gulps.

"Vhy me?" he moans as he backflips to avoid another molten red beam.

Rogue, meanwhile, is cartwheeling to avoid blue energy blasts from Blaster. The short mutant grins viciously as he sends rapidfire blasts at the young mutant, alternating between eyes as she does so.

Jesse and Jean, on the other hand, are trying to avoid concussion blasts from Hakai. Using their telekinesis the two of them form a near-impenetrable barrier around themselves, but the strength of Hakai's blasts is wearing them down fast, especially Jesse.

"Jean, d'ya think you can knock him out?" Jesse grunts as a concussive blast drives him back three feet.

"No, I can't," Jean replies, "already tried.

"Then can ya hold him off on your own for a bit?" Jesse asks, "I got an idea!"

Jean gives the go-ahead. Jesse focuses his telekinesis on the sand beneath Hakai while Jean maintains a telekinetic shield. The sand was reasonably packed, but it was still loose. A sudden push causes the ground to shift underneath Hakai and his allies. Kurt takes this opportunity to teleport behind Dual Blast and sweep her off her feet. Dual Blast goes down, but not for long.

Scott, in the meantime, manages to score a direct hit on Solari, knocking her out. He quickly turns his attention to Blaster, sending a few quick optic blasts his way as he moves to help Rogue. Blaster ducks to avoid Scott's optic blasts, but isn't able to dodge the kick to the chest from Rogue. He stumbles back but recovers quickly, promptly catching Rogue square in the chest with an energy blast, sending her flying and landing on the ground with a thud.

Scott reacts in a bad way. He fires a powerful optic blast as Blaster, releasing the beam's full power. Blaster unleashes one of his own energy blasts, but Scott's optic blast easily overpowers it, slamming into Blaster and sending him flying. He lands several yards away from where his feet left the ground. He digs a furrow in the sand as he skids to a stop. He's definitely out for a little while.

Meanwhile, Jesse has managed to get in close to Hakai, too close for him to properly use his concussion blasts. Jesse delivers a quick one-two combination to Hakai's gut, but Hakai just drives his fist into Jesse's gut, knocking the wind out of the younger mutant. Hakai is about to deliver a backhand that would shatter Jesse's jawbone but he's knocked away by an optic blast from Scott. Hakai looks around to see that Blaster and Solari are down.

"Dual Blast, fall back!" he orders, "we're outnumbered! Grab Solari and go!"

Dual Blast runs and picks up Solari while Hakai drapes Blaster over his shoulder. He turns to face the younger mutants.

"This isn't over," he promises. With that, he hits his insignia and the four mutants disappear in a flash of purple-tinged light.

"Man, who were they?" Jesse wheezes.

"I have no idea," Scott admits.

"Whoever zey are, zey are tough!" Kurt says, "that Dual Blast nearly fried and froze me!"

"No kidding," Jesse says as he helps Rogue to her feet, "you okay?"

"Ah'm fine," Rogue says, "man, that Blaster guy packs a punch! Just as much punch as you Scott."

"We'll have to ask the Professor if he knows anything," Jean says, "perhaps Cerebro picked something up."

"If nothing else we can warn the others," Jesse says.

later-

"This is a most distressing," Professor Xavier muses, "Cerebro detected no mutant activity, not even your own powers."

The four X-Men exchange glances. Jesse hadn't been informed of the full significance of Cerebro yet so he didn't know that this was a most unexpected development.

"So you have no idea who these mutants are, Professor?" Jesse asks.

"That is correct, Jesse," Professor Xavier replies, "but I feel that we will see them again in the future."

"Here's hoping that we don't," Jesse says wryly. The others nod in agreement. Those four mutants were strong, and well-trained. And they had powers that were honed for battle. It was sheer luck that they had been driven off with no injuries for the five of them.

"Go and get some rest," Professor Xavier says, "Jesse, Jean, I would like to speak with the two of you."

Rogue, Scott, and Kurt left the Professor's study, leaving Jesse and Jean to talk with him.

"I understand that you showed a marked improvement in your telekinesis today, Jesse," Professor Xavier comments.

Jesse nods. "Yessir. It came easier to me. A lot easier than it did yesterday."

"Have you tried anything else?" Professor Xavier asks.

"To tell the truth sir, the only other ability I've really used besides telekinesis I hope to never use again," Jesse replies grimly. The Professor and Jean nod their understanding. Jesse was still uncomfortable with some of his abilities, particularly his mind-altering abilities.

"Jesse, it is possible that your powers have grown in strength while you have been here," Professor Xavier says.

"Professor, Scott told me what happened with Jean when her powers grew," Jesse says, "if my powers have grown, why hasn't that happened to me?"

"Jesse, the powers that both you and Jean have are much stronger in Jean," Professor Xavier replies, "you also have several mental wards placed on your mind, inhibiting your powers. When they are removed, that is once you have gained control over them, you might have a few problems for a while before you adjust.

Jesse sighs. Right when he thought he had things figured out something threw him for a loop. Life was never easy.

That night, Professor Xavier was sitting in his study ruminating about the day's events. How had Jesse really been able to do what he had done? Everything he had said about his powers mutating further had been a lie. Some outside force had increased the strength of Jean's powers, but Xavier wasn't sure if the same or a different force had done the same to Jesse. Or perhaps Jesse's telekinetic powers were stronger than they had thought.. Whatever the reason, it had come at a fortuitous time.

They couldn't be sure that this new team of mutants hadn't had something to do with it. Logan had already checked the site of the battle but since the tide had come in he hadn't been able to identify any scents. It looked like they would have to wait for the Musu team to make the next move.

A few days later Jesse finally had a confrontation with the Brotherhood. He, Rogue, Kurt, and Scott were at the mall when Fred, Todd, Pietro, and Lance walked up.

"Well well well, looks like you geeks have picked someone else up," Lance jeers, "he even looks the part of a geek."

"Why don't you go and mind your own business, Alvers?" Scott demands.

"Yeah-I-mean-he-looks-even-wimpier-than-you-do-Summers," Pietro says. It takes Jesse a moment to realize what the speedster had said.

"Do you always talk like that?" Jesse asks.

"Whats-it-to-ya?" Pietro demands haughtily.

"Well, for one thing, how the heck do we know what you're saying?" Jesse inquires.

"So, what-does-it-matter?" Pietro demands.

"Just thought maybe you'd want to take others into consideration," Jesse replies stiffly.

"Now-why-would-I-do-that?" Pietro demands, "after-all-it's-not-my-fault-you're-all-so-slow."

"Hey man, what?" Todd demands. Even after knowing Pietro for years he still couldn't understand him when he spoke that fast. And poor Fred just looked completely lost.

Pietro sighs. This was what he got for having such slow friends. "I said, now why would I do that?"

"Oh," Todd says, then he makes out what the rest of what Pietro said was. "Hey!"

"And you're friends with him why?" Jesse asks the other members of the Brotherhood.

"Hey, he's more fun to be around than you geeks!" Todd snaps.

"At least we bathe regularly," Jesse replies coolly.

"Hey, I can't help it!" Todd snaps back, "it's a glandular problem!"

"There's a gland that keep you from bathing?" Jesse asks. Rogue and Kurt snort in amusement, while Scott looks torn between humor and stopping this.

"C'mon guys, we don't need to take this," Todd says, "we'll get you geeks later."

With that, the members of the Brotherhood walk off.

"Are they always like that?" Jesse asks.

"Yeah, they're real pains," Rogue says.

"And you used to live with them?" Jesse chuckles, "my sympathies for having to put up with the smell and ego's for so long."

Rogue grins. "Thanks. It wasn't easy. Fred wasn't too bad. He's sweet when he doesn't lose his temper."

"The problem is, he has a problem with people making fun of him," Scott comments, "I will admit though, the only one of them who doesn't have a lot of good qualities is Pietro. The others, well, they would actually be welcome at the mansion if they wanted to come. In fact, Todd and Fred were all offered places at the Institute but things just went wrong. Lance stayed for a while but we were all too on edge with him being there."

"They've been brainwashed by the propaganda given to them by, what was her name, Mystique, haven't they?" Jesse suggests. Kurt, Scott and Rogue think for a moment, then nod in agreement. It would certainly fit with how Mystique and Magneto worked. The Brotherhood, each member of them, had been duped by Mystique and Magneto. Except for Pietro, who was Magneto's son, the members of the Brotherhood were all misled. Pietro was nominally in charge of the Brotherhood and supposedly had something of a junior position in the Acolytes, like the New Mutants were to the X-Men. In short, Pietro was the Brotherhood's liaison to the Acolytes and vice versa.

"Yes they have," Scott answers sadly, "but they have made their own choices."

"As have we," Jesse agrees, "we want to just co-exist, without prejudice."

Scott, Kurt, and Rogue nod in agreement. The three of them were firm believers in Professor Xavier's dream, and Jesse's own ideals were parallel to the Professor's. More than ever since the emergence of his powers he just wanted to live in peace. But because of the common views on mutants if it was revealed that he was one then he might never get it.

"Let's get back to the Institute," Scott suggests, "you have a Danger Room simulation with the other New Mutants in an hour and a half Jesse."

Jesse grimaces. He didn't mind the rest of the New Mutants, but he really disliked the Danger Room. Logan had told him that now that his powers were more developed he could work with the others. Mostly though he was just working on his team coordination since his telekinesis wasn't sketchy in abrupt situations. Jean and the Professor had assured him though that he would get better with practice.

Three weeks have passed since Jesse moved to Bayville, a month since his powers activated. His training sessions with Jean and Logan were going well and now he was beginning to practice his telepathy. He had learned how to gleam surface thoughts easily and now he occasionally found himself responding to unspoken words.

Though he was now avoided when he was cooking almost as much as Kitty was. His food was more edible than hers, but unless he was following specific directions then he generally made a mess of things. Such as giving Logan such a bad case of food poisoning that he was stuck in bed for two days. Kurt and Tabitha were trying to figure out a way to feed some of Jesse's cooking to Fred to see if the Blob could handle it.

Now Jesse was going through a kata in one of the more secluded parts of the mansion's front yard. He was veiled by a small copse of trees. As he finishes the kata he suddenly feels the faint presence of another mind. A psionic mind.

"Is that you Jean?" Jesse calls out.

"Nope," an unfamiliar female voice replies. Jesse looks around for the source of the voice.

"Whose there?" he demands.

"My my, not much for patience, are you?" the stranger asks. Jesse realizes that he's hearing this person with his ears and his mind.

"Ah, so you figured it out," the stranger laughs, "glad you're not dense."

Jesse zeroes his mind on the source of the mental voice.

"Oh poo, you found me," the stranger says, the smirk evident in her voice. She steps out from behind a tree. Her outfit reminded Jesse of the ones that the members of Musu wore only it was solid white with a golden bird emblem on the chest. She had strawberry blonde hair that was in the same style as Jean's. Her blue-gray eyes seemed to have a mischievous glint, but Jesse couldn't be sure. Especially since mischievous in this case might result in his death.

"Another member of Musu?" Jesse asks curiously. The girl laughs.

"Why, yes I am," she replies, "you may call me Starbird."

"Code names only eh?" Jesse asks wryly, "tell me, why are you attacking me?"

"Well, for one thing, we don't like what gets away from us, and you did," Starbird replies, "we were going to recruit you but Xavier acted faster than we expected. Though you did activate sooner than expected as well."

"Activate?" Jesse blinks, "what do you mean!"

"Well, we knew that your powers would soon manifest, but we decided to be lenient and wait for them to come out, then recruit you," Starbird replies neutrally, "their sudden burst was unforeseen and most unfortunate."

"Unfortunate!" Jesse snaps, "you call turning my family into mental vegetables and killing my grandmother 'unfortunate!"

Starbird smirks. "My, don't we have a temper. You didn't used to be this way, Jesse."

"I would ask you how you knew my name, but since you appear to have been watching me before my powers came forth I guess I shouldn't be surprised," Jesse says angrily.

Starbird doesn't lose her smirk. "Oh no, I know your name for other reasons. What those are, maybe I'll tell you if you can beat me?"

"Beat you?" Jesse manages before having to duck from a sphere of telekinesis that shreds a tree branch just behind him. "Are you mad? That could have killed me!"

"Perhaps that's the idea," Starbird replies before throwing another sphere of telekinesis, but this one Jesse manages to block with a telekinetic barrier. With a gesture she lifts up several rocks and send them careening towards Jesse. Jesse's barrier continues to hold, but he knows he can't manage much more. In desperation, he tries sending out a mental call but he cannot feel any other mind. Its like that was a barrier around him that kept him from sensing anything through it.

"Surprised?" Starbird asks, "well, I couldn't have you calling the X-Men, could I? Don't worry, I am alone, and I'm sure I can handle you by myself."

"I think you may be mistaken, toots," Jesse replies as he grasps onto the soil just below Starbird and gives it a yank with his telekinesis. Not expecting something like this, having instead expecting him to attack her directly, Starbird falls gracelessly to the ground.

Not wasting a second, Jesse runs. He had to get past whatever barrier Starbird had erected and call for help. He wasn't a fighter. Not yet at least, from what Logan was saying. And Starbird definitely appeared to be planning on killing him.

But luck was not with him. Jesse runs smack dab into the barrier, a shimmering opaque wall of white light that reached up into the air and curved over the trees.

"Dang it!" Jesse growls, "I'm trapped!"

"Indeed you are!" Starbird calls out as she lobs another telekinetic sphere at Jesse that sparks against the shield when he dodges it. Starbird levitates dozens of small rocks and sends them flying at Jesse, but he diverts them with his own telekinesis, sending them uselessly against the barrier.

"You know there's no point in dragging this out," Starbird states, "tell ya what. Give up and come peacefully and I promise you'll live."

"And where would you be taking me?" Jesse asks.

"To your new home," Starbird replies, "we'll teach you how to really use your powers."

"At the cost of what?" Jesse asks, "friends? My morals? My sense of self?"

"We'll be your new friends," Starbird replies with a sultry smirk, "I in particular would like to be your friend again."

"Again?" Jesse blinks, "we know each other?"

"Some time ago," Starbird replies, "so, are you in?"

"While I would like to know how I knew you, I'm happy where I am," Jesse answers, "so I guess I'll have to politely decline your invitation."

"Very well then," Starbird sighs, "guess I'll just have to make it so that Xavier can't use you against us."

With that, Starbird raises her right arm, hand open and outstretched towards Jesse. Jesse begins to feel a slight tightening around his heart. She was using her telekinesis to crush his heart! And she was apparently going to do it slowly to give him a chance to change his mind.

"If you come with me, I can promise that you'll live," Starbird says calmly.

"Bite me," Jesse snaps as he sends a telekinetic spike at Starbird. She releases her grip on Jesse's heart to raise a shield. This gives Jesse a moment's reprieve to think of something else.

He doesn't. Starbird renews her assault on his heart, this time sparking some of his pain centers to keep him from attempting another telekinesis spike.

Inside his mind, Jesse can feel things falling apart. He was panicking. Things were beginning to go dark. He could feel the tenuous control he had over his partially freed telekinesis begin to lapse.

At the moment Jesse passes out, Kurt teleports in with Scott.

"Vhat are you doing to him!"

"Oopsie," Starbird says coyly, "forgot there was a teleporter here. Guess I'll have to come for dear Jesse later."

"I don't think so," Scott says adamantly, "release him!"

"I already have," Starbird replies, "he's still alive, though you might want to get him to a doctor. He's on the verge of cardiac arrest."

"How did you do this?" Scott demands.

Starbird laughs mirthlessly. "Why, like this!"

With that, Starbird levitates Scott and throws him into a tree. Scott's glasses fall off and an optic blast slams into Starbird, slamming her into a tree. Starbird rubs her head, fighting off the dizziness.

"I think I'd better get going," she says groggily. She taps the golden bird pattern on her uniform and disappears in a shimmer of white light. The luminescent dome disappears with her.

"You alright?" Kurt asks as Scott gets up.

"I'll be fine," Scott replies as he secures his glasses, "how's Jesse?"

"I zhink he vill be alright, but ve should get him to Beast," Kurt replies. Kurt grabs the both of them after he and Scott lift Jesse off the ground and he teleports them to the medical area of the Institute.

Later that day Jesse woke back up feeling pain in his chest.

"Easy Jesse, stay still," Hank McCoy orders. He runs a scanner over Jesse's chest, checking his heart.

"ooo what happened?" Jesse asks groggily.

"That girl, whoever she was, tried to crush your heart," Hank replies, "she had ample opportunity to do so, but she didn't."

"She wanted to get me to join them," Jesse says softly, "they were watching me from before my powers manifested. They KNEW my powers would manifest, and were waiting for it to happen."

"Jesse, calm down," Hank says soothingly, "you mustn't get worked up. Your heart just went through a great strain and it won't be up to par for a while."

Jesse sighs and adjusts himself, getting a bit more comfortable in the rough hospital bed.

"How much longer will I be here?" Jesse asks.

"A few days, perhaps," Hank assures him, "its Friday so you have the weekend and Monday you and Charles will be heading back to your home to finalize the legalities of your new guardianship."

Jesse nods. "So I have three, four days? Will that be enough?"

Hank nods. "You might want to try and take it easy for a while. I will tell Logan that you are not to train in the Danger Room, but other than that your training can go along smoothly."

Jesse nods in reluctant acceptance. Right now the Danger Room did little for his powers except slowly but surely enable him to bring them forth at a moments notice. He was getting more out of his training with Logan and Jean than the Danger Room.

a few days later-

Sunday Jesse found himself playing chess with Professor Xavier in his study. Xavier was an accomplished chess player while Jesse was relatively a novice. But he did enjoy playing. Locke had been teaching him how to play back home and Xavier was helping him learn. He said that chess was a good way to work the mind and Jesse had to agree. The day after being attacked by Starbird Jesse mostly stayed either in his room or in one of the living rooms watching cartoons with Jamie. Besides Scott, Kurt, and Rogue and his mentor/student relationship with Logan, Jesse seemed to bond with Jamie the most, and that was something no one could explain. The two of them had even pulled a prank or two on Bobby, much to the ice mutant's chagrin. Though he did find the pranks funny, even if he was the victim. His hair was still pink, but Jesse assured him that with another wash it would be back to normal.

"Knight takes Rook," Jesse says, moving the pieces appropriately with his telekinesis. It was Jesse who had thought to try the entire game using telekinesis. Even the pieces that had been taken out of the game were suspended mid-air over their heads. He was trying to focus his telepathy, but using it and his telekinesis at the same time was too much work at the moment.

"_Excellent move Jesse_," Professor Xavier comments telepathically. His own telekinetic powers were not that much, to tell the truth, but this was more an exercise for Jesse. He was using his telepathy to 'talk' to Jesse to help open his mind to his own telepathic powers while Jesse used his telekinesis to move the pieces.

"_Thanks Professor_," Jesse manages to respond, the chess pieces wavering slightly as he used his telepathy to 'talk' to the Professor.

"_Are you adjusting well to the Institute_?" Professor Xavier asks telepathically as he moves a Pawn to take Jesse's last Knight.

"Yes sir," Jesse replies vocally, "its nice here, and Scott, Kurt, and Rogue are great."

"_Indeed_," the Professor responds, "_I'm glad that you find it enjoyable here. You know, your seventeenth birthday is on Tuesday. Will you be joining your friends in your former home to celebrate while we are there to finalize custody_?"

"If I can," Jesse replies, "Rook takes Pawn. It's nice talking to Locke on the phone but I miss everyone else. I may not have been close to them, but I get a bit homesick you know?"

Professor Xavier nods his understanding. Scott, Ray (Berserker), Rogue, and Tabitha were the only ones who never got homesick because they each had a new home here at the Institute.

"And you miss your family?" Xavier asks softly, cutting off his telepathy for the time being.

"Its strange, but I do," Jesse replies, startling Xavier. Seeing the Professor's confused look, Jesse elaborates. "I was never close to a lot of my family. Heck, I'm already closer to Scott, Rogue, and Kurt than I was to most of my family save my aunt. I'm closer to Jamie than I was to any of my younger cousins."

Professor Xavier nods sadly. He knew that Jesse hadn't been on the best of terms with his family, and now that he felt responsible for their current conditions. Jesse was a good person who had had something very unfortunate happen to him. It was times like this though that made Xavier glad that there were places like the Institute.

"I'm glad I came here," Jesse continues, making the Professor wonder if Jesse had 'heard' his thoughts, "everyone is nice. I feel more at home here than I did back in Tennessee. And Kurt, Rogue, and Scott are great. Locke was the only person I've ever been as friendly with as I am with them."

Professor Xavier nods his understanding. He had seen how close Jesse, Kurt, Scott, and Rogue had become. It was heartening to see, especially since Rogue was smiling more. She had never smiled much, because of the burden her powers gave her, but after her traumatic episodes with her powers and then being used by Mesmero to release Apocalypse only Kurt had been able to get her to give even the smallest of smiles. Now she would smile and even laugh.

Scott had been less uptight as well. True, dating Jean had loosened him up greatly but now he was friendly and open. Nightcrawler too was happier than he had been since he had been forced to stop dating Amanda Sefton due to her parents had forbidden her to see him. He was still hurting, but he was better now.

Jesse himself had changed since he had first come to the mansion. Unsure of himself, scared of his powers, and horrified at what he had done, his adjustment had been hard. Moving to a new state, amidst total strangers. But he had bonded with Scott, Kurt, and Rogue. The four of them were well nigh inseparable. Much like Xavier recalled Scott and Jean being when they were younger after Jean first came to the Institute, before she began to become popular.

But a few stray thoughts worried him. In the visions he had gotten from Apocalypse before he had vanished into the flow of time, most of the X-Men were visible but Jesse was nowhere to be seen. Some of the Acolytes, such as Colossus and Gambit, had been present but not Jesse. What this meant, Xavier could only guess. Hopefully it did not mean anything sinister.

Turning his attention back to the game, Xavier moves his Queen. "Checkmate."

Jesse stares at the board for a moment, then sets all of the pieces back down as he moves them all into their starting positions. "Good game Professor. Shall we go again?"

Professor Xavier smiles. No matter what the challenges lay in the future for him, the X-Men, and Jesse, they would face it as a team, and as friends.

-

Advertisement 

SpiderX

StoryID: 1898532/1/

Author: Agent-G

Summary: Spider-Man, X-Men: Evolution crossover. After their meeting with Warren, Rogue and Scott have another encounter while in New York.

My opinion: A brilliant story. I'm a huge fan of Spider-Man, in fact he's my favorite Marvel Comics character next to Wolverine (and even then it's a tight race) and, as my own story shows, I love X-Men: Evolution. The story is long, in fact its nearly finished and has 49 chapters, plus an Epilogue, and an upcoming sequel. This is a work of genius and I encourage you to read it if you haven't already. This story has a lot of the traditional X-Men: Evolution pairings such as Lance/Kitty, Scott/Jean, Kurt/Amanda (that normal girl he's seeing), but also one I'd never even consider: Rogue/Peter(Spider-Man).

I also got the idea for using telekinesis to try and crush Jesse's heart from the fic 'Family Affairs' by Agent-G.

Daniel Lynx: Jesse and Rogue? I dunno. I was planning on waiting until the sequel to pair Jesse up with anyone, but I think you've given me an idea. As for the rest of Jesse's powers, the realm of the mind is virtually limitless. grins If you look over the short list of powers that have been attributed to Jesse, you'll see that the only reason he can be considered a strong mutant because he has such a varied amount of psionic abilities. Most any psionic ability you can think of, Jesse has a weak, and I do mean weak, version of it. He will have one power that is above-average in strength, but I have yet to decide what it is. I might see if I can actually make one up.

I admit to being a Lance/Kitty fan, though don't expect a lot of fluff or anything like that. I'm going with about what they showed on the show (not that good a romance writer, but I know I can write some darn good sweet and tender moments). I am traditionally a Rogue/Gambit fan, but with a few fics I've read lately I'm more open-minded.

Also I was thinking of bringing Spider-Man into this in some fashion, though not as a student or anything. Trying to figure out how I want to bring him in and in what way. I'm leaning towards the movie version.

Sword info comes from http/ www. aiusa. com/medsword/vmframe.html

Voting: Hey, I was wondering what you think Jesse's strongest power should be. I did a little research in other Marvel characters and it turns out he has powers very similar to Frankling Richards, the son of Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman of the Fantastic Four. I thought he could just alter reality, but it seems that his psionic powers are so strong he can literally bend reality to his will. Jesse won't be nearly that strong (Franklin can do all that and he's only 5 or so, with mental blocks stopping most of his powers!), but he will be similar. Most of his powers will be slightly below average in strength, though they will support one another to get 125 out of what he can do with each ability (making them all about normal strength), but one power will be above average strength. Mind, these are what he'll be able to do with that one power once he's fully trained, and he probably won't achieve the level described in this fic.

The choices are:

1. Telepathy (can penetrate any mental barrier and will even be able to help Logan sort his memories)

2. Telekinesis (basically, he can shred matter with a thought by severing molecular bonds and create virtually solid barriers that can stop most anything short of a missile)

3. Psionic bolts (can gather free energy floating around in the air and chuck it out in concussive blasts with relative ease. If you're a fan of Dragon Ball Z, think Vegeta. This will give him slightly enhanced telekinesis as well)

4. Astral projection (his astral projected body will be able to interact physically if this is the one)

5. Memory altering/mind control (basically, think Mastermind with what he did to Wanda and Mesmero with what he did to the X-Men and Gambit)

6. Astral plane (basically he's one heck of a badass on the astral plane, where the powers of the mind are the ONLY powers viable, plus the mystic arts. He can pull others to the astral plane whether they could get there on their own or not including non-psionics and pull others from it. He can also completely transform his body into an astral form, making him sortof like a ghost, or maybe a poltergeist)

7. Sight (can see into the future, the past, and the present with the utmost clarity, or at least as much clarity as you can get with the future; will also have a danger sense like Spider-Man's, only it works for anyone in his immediate vicinity that he feels responsible for)

I am leaning towards one or two of the abilities personally, but I'd like reader input. Anyway, I hope everyone who reads this will review.


	4. Homecoming

Disclaimer: I only own Jesse and any other characters you see that you don't recognize, like the members of Musu or Jesse's friends.

"talking"

'thinking'

'_telepathy_'

I've been doing some revising. Look back in the previous chapters for any corrections, particularly chapter one. The whole of X-Men: Evolution, to me, happened over the space of a year and a half. Scott and Jean are still going to Bayville High because of the time they were banned from the school was long enough for them to lose enough credits to keep them from graduating, but they'll only be there for one semester. The graduation episode still happened, the whole discrepancy with the credits was discovered afterwards. They were juniors when the show started.

-

'Hasn't changed much,' Jesse thinks to himself as he steps off the X-jet, 'then again, it's only been a month.'

He was back home. Or what used to be home. He had been in Bayville for a month now, learning to control his new psionic powers and going to a new school. For nearly two weeks he had trained with Logan and Professor Xavier while everyone else was at school, and when Jean was home he would practice with her if he wasn't hanging out with his new friends. Thinking of them brings a smile to Jesse's face. Scott, Rogue, and Kurt were among the best people Jesse had ever met.

Scott was forced to wear glasses like Jesse, only for different reasons. His mutant powers came in the form of red concussive blasts from his eyes. He couldn't control them so he had to wear glasses made of a special ruby quartz that contained them. He was also the leader of the X-Men, the team of highly trained mutants that defended Professor Xavier's dream of humans and mutants living together peacefully.

Rogue was a girl that Jesse had formed a strange friendship with. They both felt the same guilt about their powers. Jesse had absorbed the minds of his family when his powers burst forth, and whenever Rogue had skin-to-skin contact with someone she absorbed their memories and life force, and in the case of mutants their powers. That and the two of them were both from the South, though he was from Tennessee and Rogue was from Mississippi.

Kurt looked like a demon, but he had the heart of a saint. Luckily the Professor had a watch with a holographic projector on it that enabled Kurt to go out in public without scaring people. Kurt's teleportation ability was very useful, even if he left behind a sulfurous smoke when he appeared and reappeared.

And all three of them were quite different. Scott was a bit uptight and serious, while Rogue was gloomy, as befitting a Goth. Kurt was a fun-loving guy, and usually made light of any situation, but when it was needed he could be quite serious. The four of them were quite balanced. Each of them had their own skills and their own personalities, but they balanced out. And Scott, Rogue, and Kurt were three of the first four people from the Institute that Jesse had met. Sure, Jean had been there but there just wasn't a connection like there was with those three. All of three them were raised by someone who was not their biological parents. Scott's had died in a plane crash when he was young and he had been raised by Xavier since a year after that when his powers activated, Rogue had been raised by a woman named Irene. Kurt had been raised by the Wagner's since he was a baby when Mystique had lost him in that river. And Jesse had been raised by his aunt when his mother had been deemed unsuitable.

Now he was back in his old home to finalize the papers required for Charles Xavier to become his new legal guardian. With his aunt a mental vegetable and him being under eighteen he was considered a minor, and thus legally incapable of taking care of himself. Jesse himself had decided to get Xavier to assume legal guardianship in case something happened in Bayville.

"Are you all right, Jesse?" Professor Xavier asks as he guides his wheelchair down the ramp.

"About as well as expected, Professor," Jesse admits as Logan follows the Professor, "so, we're taking care of the business with those papers first, right?"

Xavier nods his affirmation. "Indeed. We thought it might be best if that was dealt with first so we would be free for the next few days. I'm sure you wouldn't want it hanging over your head while you spend time with your friends."

Jesse grins and Logan pulls out his motorcycle to take Jesse to his home to get his car. He had left it behind since he didn't feel right taking it. That and there hadn't been room aboard the X-Jet. Now they would be carrying it back with them when they returned.

When Jesse arrived back an hour later in his '92 Taurus, Professor Xavier decided that Jesse was a far better driver than Kitty, even if he was only a slightly better cook. Jesse helps the Professor into the passenger side of his car, then folds up the wheelchair and puts it in the back.

"Well sir, I hope everything works out today," Jesse says as he gets behind the wheel and buckles up. He pulls out three cassettes. Two were unlabeled, since they were mixes he had made. "Hey Professor, your choice of music. I got a tape with a lot of classic country on it, a Bon Jovi/Queen mix, and a tape of the greatest hits of the Monkees."

The Professor's lips quirk in a small smile. "I think we need something to smile about."

"Right on," Jesse grins as he pops the Monkees tape into the radio after starting the car up. As he pulls out onto the street the opening lyrics to the theme song from the old Monkees TV show plays through the speakers, Jesse humming along.

several hours later-

Everything, luckily enough, had gone smoothly. Despite almost getting lost, which had been prevented by the Professor's keen mind, they had made it to the child services building well in time for their appointment. They ended up having to wait for nearly an hour, but Jesse and the Professor spent the time talking telepathically to strengthen Jesse's mind. Jesse hadn't picked up any errant thoughts, for which he was thankful.

Now Jesse and the Professor were in the hotel room they were sharing. Logan was staying in the X-Jet to keep an eye on it while they stayed in more comfortable accommodations. They could have stayed at one of the houses of someone in Jesse's family, but Jesse had had all of the utilities cut off since it would have cost a lot to keep even the basic utilities on.

"So Professor, any specific plans for this morning?" Jesse asks when they finish getting ready for the day, "the youth group's still in school right now and there's not much to do in this town."

"Jesse, have you thought about visiting your family?" Professor Xavier asks gently. Jesse remains silent. "Jesse, you need to see them. You have to face them."

Jesse sighs. "I know Professor, and to be honest I'm scared."

"I understand," Professor Xavier says, "and you do have a good reason to be afraid. But Jesse, you can't let it keep you from your family."

"Yes Professor," Jesse agrees sullenly, "I just don't know if I'm ready."

"Are we ever ready to face the bad things in life?" Professor Xavier asks, "Jesse, you can't let fear rule your life. To do so would keep you from truly enjoying life."

"But its just so hard, Professor," Jesse sighs, "but I guess I need to try. They would want me to live."

Xavier nods and the two of them head off to the nursing home that Jesse's family had been placed in. The place had excellent standards of care and employees who cared about their patients.

later-

After visiting his family, Jesse drops the Professor off back at the X-Jet, picking up Logan to take as an escort. Apparently they figured he was a target. Starbird had said that she and her teammates had been watching him, waiting for his powers to unfold before they recruited him. As such, they couldn't leave him alone anymore except inside the mansion. Though to be safe all of the students were now required to buddy up. Only Logan, Ororo, the Professor, and Hank could leave the mansion alone, and Hank rarely left the mansion due to his appearance and he didn't like the holowatches. He only used them in emergencies.

So now Jesse was stuff with having Logan as an escort. If there was anyone capable of dampening the mood for a party more than Logan, Jesse hadn't met them yet. He had the most intimidating presence imaginable, and his gruff demeanor did nothing to make you think he was friendly. He seemed to have a soft spot for Kitty, but who didn't? The girl was so bubbly you couldn't help but like her. Even Rogue had warmed up to the girl when she had first moved into the mansion.

As Jesse pulls into the parking lot, Logan pulls in behind him on his motorcycle.

"Nice place," Logan comments as he pulls his helmet off and Jesse gets out of his car. They had pulled into a nice-looking church parking lot. There were several other cars there and a few trucks.

"Thanks," Jesse replies, "this was my home away from home while I was living here. You gonna come in and meet everyone or just stay out here?"

Logan nods his head. He would go in, if only to keep an eye on Jesse and be nearby if something happened.

When they entered the building they are greeted by eleven teenagers and four adults. Two of the adults Logan recognized as being Jesse's old neighbors and the parents of his best friend Locke. Among the teenagers are Locke and his slightly younger sister Katie. Besides Katie, there are only two other girls, though one of the two remaining adults was a woman. Logan recalled Jesse calling her 'Miss Ellen'. Apparently she was the youth director at this church. From the looks of things, Jesse was the oldest of the teens. He was a senior while even the oldest of the others was a junior.

"Guys, this is Logan, the physical fitness instructor at the Institute," Jesse says by way of introduction. Logan nods gruffly.

The heavyset dark-haired boy, who was the oldest of the teens after Jesse, was Stephen. He was just a few months younger than Jesse, past the cut-off date for school so he had had to wait another year. He seemed friendly enough to Logan.

The tall, lanky dirty-blonde haired boy was Brad. He almost reminded Logan of Bobby in the way he acted, but something told Logan that he went farther than was necessary with his jokes.

The tall brown-haired girl was Lindsey. She was the pastor's daughter and, according to Jesse, really sweet. She seemed friendly enough, almost like Kitty in her outgoing personality. She was Stephen's age.

Anna, the dark-haired girl, almost reminded Logan of Rogue, only she seemed more cheerful. She was a few years younger than Jesse, being the same age as Katie, Locke's sister.

Matt was another blonde-haired boy, his hair being several shades light than Brad's. He played a bit of baseball. He seemed to be a bit more of the rebel type. He vaguely reminded Logan of Lance.

Josh was a stockily built eight grader. He went to a private school and seemed a bit on the naïve side, with his sheltered lifestyle, but he fit right in, joking with everyone. He was about Jamie's age.

Kevin was a year and a half younger than Jesse, being a sophomore. He was a football player at the closest high school, one of the three in the city. It had been Jesse's old school before transferring to Bayville.

David was Kevin's younger brother, and was Jamie's age. He didn't really resemble his brother except in coloring, but Logan later found out that he greatly resembled his eldest brother George.

Logan remembered Tanya and Randall, Locke's parents and Jesse's former neighbors. Ellen, the group's leader, was a dark-haired women in her mid-thirties. Her husband Brent was tall, about 6', with dark hair in a buzz cut. He also had a faint beard and mustache.

Last but not least were Locke and Katie. Logan remembered the lanky teen with dark brown hair who had given Jesse his send-off. From what he could recall he was Jesse's closest friend.

Katie on the other hand seemed to immediately launch into a rant at Jesse for not calling or even telling her brother to say that he said 'hi'. Logan smirks. Jean had commented that Katie had some feelings for Jesse, but they were a cross between really liking him and thinking of him as another brother/big brother's best friend.

The party itself was a small affair. Apparently these were all the people Jesse knew in this town, with one or two exceptions from school but he hadn't known them that well. So Jesse had a little over a dozen people there for his birthday party.

The party itself was small, but festive. Everyone was certainly enjoying themselves.

"So, how is it that you're here with Jesse?" the youth leader, Ellen, asks.

"I'm an instructor at the Institute where he now lives," Logan replies, "I teach self defense and gym."

"Why is Jesse there?" Ellen asks, "don't get me wrong, he's a bright kid, but a private school just doesn't seem to suit him."

"Actually, he goes to the local high school," Logan replies, "we just teach specialized classes that he can't get anywhere else."

"What kind of classes?" Ellen persists.

"I teach self defense and gym myself," Logan repeats, "Hank teaches science and chemistry. Scott and Jean don't teach just yet since there was some mix-ups in their credits and they have to go back to school for one more semester. Ororo teaches gardening classes as well as language and history."

"Doesn't sound very balanced," Ellen observes.

"Those are just the classes we have teachers for," Logan admits, "we don't have a full staff yet. We're working on getting separate teachers for various classes. Luckily we don't have that many students. Less than twenty. But it does provide for intense focus on the individual."

Ellen nods. "So, why is Jesse there?"

"The kid's smarter than he lets on," Logan replies, "he just doesn't admit it. He catches on quick, too. He does best in my classes. Picks up on everything quickly. A few more months and he'll be on par with the students who have been there longer, even Scott whose been there since he was twelve."

"He's picked up things quickly as long as we've known him," Ellen admits, "but he just doesn't try to apply it."

"He does now," Logan says, "he's a good kid. Polite almost to a fault."

"He seems different now though," Ellen observes as she watches Jesse chase Katie after the girl had whapped him upside the head for a comment, "more easygoing. He used to be withdrawn."

Logan arches an eyebrow. Jesse was acting different? "How withdrawn?"

"Like he just didn't feel like he fit in," Ellen replies, "and he doesn't, to be honest. He doesn't open up, but he will offer his opinion. But he still wouldn't say much. He wouldn't put himself forward in anything."

'Something's not adding up,' Logan muses, 'why is he so different? It couldn't be losing his family, because he'd be going in the other direction: be even more depressed. So what is it?'

"He doesn't open up to many at the Institute either," Logan admits, "only Scott, Kurt, and Rogue."

"Rogue?" Ellen asks, surprised at the name. Logan smirks.

"She's a Goth, so she doesn't open up to many people either," Logan replies, "I am surprised that she's become his friend. Before she would only open up to her brother, Kurt."

Later on, after the party had died down a little, Jesse was talking with the others about what had been going on while he was gone.

"So, what've you been discussing at the meetings while I was gone?" Jesse asks.

"Mutants," Kevin answers, "whether or not they're a threat."

"And what d'you think?" Jesse asks.

"Personally?" Kevin says, "I think they're just people who are trying to fit in."

"Forget it!" Matt snaps, "mutants are a threat! They aren't even human!"

"It's just one gene," Locke says reasonably, "I've read the science reports. Mutants have a gene, called the X-gene, that humans don't. A lot of people just have a dormant X-gene. You, me, anyone in here could have it but it's just dormant, doing nothing. Mutants have an active X-gene that gives them their abilities."

"What about those that don't even look human?" Matt demands, "they're freaks, monsters!"

It takes all of Jesse's self-control not to snap at Matt. Mutants like Kurt and Hank had the hardest lives. The only way Kurt was able to pass himself off as normal was with his image inducer. Hank couldn't even go out with an image inducer because he was wanted.

"Actually, they probably have it worse," Jesse says, "they can't even fit in without disguising themselves. They have to lie about themselves just to go out in public. And then when they're exposed they're shunned. They get stuff thrown at them and are called vile, vulgar names."

"Well, what about that Juggernaut guy, or that other mutant who had those domes?" Matt demands.

"They aren't representatives of all mutants," Jesse retorts, "I'd imagine that most mutants are even scared of themselves when their powers first emerge. I mean, think about some of the mutants we've seen on TV. Like that guy who can shoot spikes from his arms. How would you feel if one day you woke up and you had that stuff sticking out of you?"

"And hey, the world's known about mutants for a while," Katie puts in, "remember that guy we learned about in history class from World War II? Captain America? He could have been a mutant."

"Didn't he save grandma's life once?" Locke asks his sister, "she was a spy put in a concentration camp because they thought she was Jewish. She said him and another commando saved his life."

Logan arches an eyebrow at that. He recalled those rescue operations. He and Cap had gone on many little adventures like that, including one where they had kept Germany from developing its own atomic bomb. Some of his memories were a bit fuzzy, but a lot of the memories of that time were clear, and they were backed by other people. Like Fury. Fury had done all he could to help Logan regain his memories, as had Professor Xavier. Xavier had done all he could to help break through the mental barriers in his mind, but in the end they decided that he would have to find his past himself.

"It doesn't matter, mutants are a threat to humanity," Matt repeats, "nothing you say could change that."

"Sorry to hear that," Jesse says sadly, and for a moment Logan thinks Jesse was gonna reveal that he was a mutant, "a closed mind learns nothing."

"So Jesse, I take it you have a different view on mutants?" Ellen asks.

"For the large part, I say a live and let live policy would work," Jesse replies, "give them every bit as much a chance as living beings under the law and personally. I'm not saying there aren't mutants who aren't bad, that Juggernaut is a prime example, but there are many more who just want a chance to live peacefully. Just give'em a chance. What about everyone else?"

Matt mutters something under his breath. Jesse, Locke, and Katie are tense, each of them fearing what would happen when, not if, Jesse's mutant powers came forth. It wouldn't be pleasant, that was almost certain.

"I say give 'em a chance too," Josh says, "there was a mutant going to school with me but she was expelled when it was revealed that he was a mutant. But before then she was pretty nice. And all she had was a few physical mutations, like pointed ears, lavender skin, and some triangle marks on her face."

Lindsey and David voice similar opinions. The only one there who was adamantly opposed to mutants was Matt. Brad was on the fence, but said that if he met a friendly mutant, he'd give them a chance.

It was late in the evening, getting dark in fact, when it happened. The group was out playing a game of tag football when a branch snaps and proceeds to fall on Stephen. Jesse reacts without thinking and catches the branch with his telekinesis before it can land on Stephen. With a mental shove Jesse throws the branch several yards away where it hits the ground with several audible snaps.

Jesse freezes as he realizes that everyone, minus Katie and Locke, was staring at him. With a sigh he meets everyone's faces. Matt's face is showing surprise, disgust, and hatred, but the others are merely surprised. With a sigh, Jesse faces the others.

"How did you?" Josh manages before Jesse cuts him off.

"Telekinesis," Jesse replies before Josh can finish "and yes, I am a mutant. I have psionic powers, meaning I got mind abilities."

"You mean you can read minds?" Kevin asks.

"Yes," Jesse answers, "I can currently 'hear' what you're thinking if I concentrate, move things with my mind if they aren't too big or too heavy, and sometimes see the past. Maybe the future too but anything I may have 'seen' hasn't happened yet. I'm hoping everything I 'saw' was just a nightmare. I can also create barriers of pure force with my mind but that takes a lot."

"You're a stinkin' mutie!" Matt yells.

"Matt!" Ellen says sharply, "apologize or leave. If you're going to be bigoted about this, about Jesse, then you don't have to stay."

"You're all a bunch of mutie lovers," Matt sneers as he storms off.

"Well, that's not gonna end well," Jesse murmurs as he watches Matt leave, "but I expected as much."

"I'm sorry about that Jesse," Ellen apologizes.

"It's nothing," Jesse says, waving it off, "some of my new friend's have gotten worse, like Kurt."

"He has a physical mutation?" Locke asks.

"You remember seeing those news reports when mutants were unveiled?" Jesse asks. At Locke's nod he continues. "Kurt was the blue fuzzy guy. The smaller one."

"I remember seeing that report!" Katie exclaims.

"I remember you saying he was cute," Locke teases his sister, making her blush.

Jesse snickers. "Well Katie, if you want to try and seduce Kurt you'll have competition. His hearts already taken, and we're currently working on a plan to get him back into her parents' good graces. Another mutant showed up at the dinner where he was being introduced to them and wrecked the place. They still see each other in secret from her parents, but its not easy. One slip-up and her parents may try a restraining order. But Kurt really does care about Amanda. I'm almost positive the poor boy's in love."

Logan chuckles. He'd heard Kurt go on and on about Amanda. To be sure, the elf needed someone like that to lift his spirits. Rogue may have been his adopted sister but she wasn't the uplifting type. And he'd been happy with her until that incident with Toad. Now her parents were forbidding her from seeing Kurt.

"Hey, I do have a few pictures in my wallet of some of the others," Jesse says, "anyone interested?"

After a chorus of yeses from the others Jesse takes the pictures out of his wallet and passes them around, explaining the people in the photos.

"Scott has to wear those glasses because he can't control his optic blasts. He's a bit strict, some of the younger students call him 'Mr. Military', but he's there for you when you need him. Jean there is his girlfriend. It can be pretty sickening how mushy they get around each other. Jean has telepathy and telekinesis, though her abilities are stronger than mine."

"What about you and this girl?" Josh asks, holding up a picture of just Jesse and Rogue laughing at one of Kurt's pranks on Bobby, "got a girlfriend now?"

"That's Rogue," Jesse replies evenly, "she's a lot like me, actually. She's a Goth, though not one of those depressing ones. I personally think if she could touch, she'd give it all up since she wouldn't be so isolated."

"Why can't she touch?" Lindsey asks.

"When she has skin-to-skin contact with someone, she drains them of their life force," Jesse explains, "she takes memories, physical abilities, and if they're mutants she takes their powers too. She can't control it and it all stays with her, running the risk of her losing control if she absorbs too many people without Professor Xavier creating barriers around those personalities. He's working on a way to purge those personalities, but its slow work."

"So there's nothing going on between you two?" Anna asks.

"No, why, you interested in her?" Jesse smirks, eliciting laughs from most of the others and snickers from the rest. Logan just raises an eyebrow.

Anna chokes back her own laughter. "No, but are you?"

"Honestly?" Jesse says, "no. Rogue's a great girl and all, but I don't think we could make dating work out between us. As it is, she's my best friend. Almost like another sister, to be honest."

"Have you even told your sister that you're a mutant?" Locke asks. Jesse remains silent. Locke frowns. "Have you told your mom?"

Jesse sighs. "How in the world do I start that conversation? 'Hi mom, I'm a mutant and I turned most of our family into mental vegetables'?"

"Is that what happened?" Lindsey asks softly.

Jesse nods. "My powers just exploded forth. I wiped the mind of everyone in a hundred foot radius clean, and pulled some of their memories into my head. I even have some of their nightmares now. Its terrible. At least training with Logan I can force things from my mind."

"How does that help?" Lindsey asks.

"I keep him focused on trying to avoid these," Logan smirks as he pops out his claws, startling everyone but the Locke and his family. They had seen Logan's mutation before. Logan resheathes his claws. Josh gulps. "No pretty, huh bub? You see these coming at your head your first thought is 'How do I survive?' not 'What was I dreaming about last night?'."

"Trust me, it's a great way to get things off your mind," Jesse assures them.

Jesse continues telling the others about the Institute and the other mutants, including giving a small show of his telekinesis by lifting a baseball up in the air and having it zoom around above their heads.

"I can't do much right now," Jesse explains, "but I apparently have a lot of potential because of some of my other abilities. I can See the very bonds that hold the atoms of things together, and with a lot of focus and concentration I could probably use my telekinesis to reshape those bonds or break them how I see fit."

"So you could create or destroy with ease," Locke muses, "with that guy being one of your instructors I'd think you were just gonna become a mindless grunt."

Jesse laughs as Logan growls. "No, it wasn't Logan who pointed out what I could do, it was Jean and the Professor. We're not gonna try anything until we can find a way for me to test this safely. It wouldn't do to blow everything up."

"Like that could happen," Josh states.

"It could," Locke says, "if Jesse tries to rearrange the atoms in something and doesn't get it just right, the whole thing will collapse and be just as destructive as an atomic bomb."

The group winces. Definitely not an easy ability to live with. He couldn't win. First he wiped the minds of his closest family and now it turns out that the rest of his abilities have incredible destructive potential.

"Are you doing alright up there?" Ellen asks.

"Definitely," Jesse says, "I'm accepted for who I am there. Don't get me wrong, you guys have always been great, but I didn't just fit in. At the Institute, I have something irrefutably in common with everyone. We're all mutants. There's no judging, just teasing. That's what Xavier's is: a place where mutants can be free, be themselves. Be safe."

"Then that's exactly where you should be," Locke says, "I hate to say this about you man, but you're dangerous with those powers of yours. But its good that you're learning control."

Jesse chuckles. "Yeah, I suppose I am pretty dangerous, with just any of the things I can do with my powers. But once I get them under control, I can really help people. Like people with schizophrenia. I can erect barriers within their minds to help them control their behavior. Or I could help the police interrogate felons. Or even help pull people out of comas."

"Do you think you'll be able to help your family?" Locke asks.

"I definitely hope so," Jesse says solemnly, "I definitely hope so."

As the conversation continues, it steers towards the day Jesse's powers activated.

"Jesse, how did you even convince the cops to let you go home?" Locke asks, "you know they're pretty anti-mutant. After all, Matt's dad is also on the force."

"Come to think of it, I don't know," Jesse admits, "I jus wanted to go home and lie down, maybe get a little bit to eat, but mostly get out of there."

"Jesse, do you think its possible that you somehow made the police let you go?" Locke asks, "subconsciously?"

"Maybe," Jesse admits, "I'd have to talk to the Professor about it, but it does make sense. They did say I have a broad range of abilities, and they can't tell all that I can do. But Professor Xavier can alter people's minds, erase thoughts and the like. So can Jean. They said I might be able to do that with practice. But right now I can only pick up 'loud' thoughts and move small objects. That tree branch is the heaviest thing I've ever moved, spontaneously or not."

"Its sound thinking," Logan says, "Chuck and Red know how to do that stuff and it is possible to do it without realizing it, especially if you're emotional."

"So I influenced their minds without realizing it?" Jesse gulps. Logan thought Jesse looked scared. He probably was. To know that you could influence the minds of others without realizing it, or wanting to do it, was a scary thought. Just as scary as destroying another persons mind without realizing it, and the two abilities were uncomfortably closely related.

Locke, meanwhile, felt bad for his friend. He had to go through so much since his powers activated. He had to work hard to keep his powers under control. A single slip-up could create havoc and ruin lives. It was a terrible burden to bear.

"I'm afraid so Specs," Logan answers evenly, "don't worry, Red and the Professor will straighten things out. At least you know of something else you can do."

"Yeah, great," Jesse mutters unenthusiastically.

Logan lays a hand on Jesse's shoulder. "Cheer up, Specs. At least now that we've realized that you have this ability, we can take steps to help you control it."

"Yeah yeah," Jesse sighs, "I know. Its just that this is so annoying."

"When it rains, it pours," Logan agrees, "at least its only suspected that you're a mutant back in Bayville. Otherwise it would be a lot harder to maintain your composure kid."

"Yeah, but some of the teachers sure don't let up," Jesse replies, "bigoted piece of garbage."

"He's just trying to force you to do something," Logan reminds the teen, "just ignore him if you can."

Jesse snorts. "Well, I can't completely tune him out like I do those idiot jocks. I do have to listen to him to learn, after all."

"It's a shame that the minds of so many people are closed to mutants," Ellen says.

"The world would be a better place if people were more open-minded about those who are different," Jesse agrees, "but, people fear what they don't understand, and they try to destroy what they fear. It's human nature."

"Things are bound to get better," Locke assures his friend, "after all, we got by racism against blacks in the Sixties, didn't we?"

"True, but mutants don't just differ because of the color of their skin," Jesse counters, "some don't even have skin, or they may have an exoskeleton or even fur. Mutants can literally come in all shapes and sizes, any skin tone imaginable and probably some that aren't. And besides, it took nearly a century for things to change."

"Nothing worth having is easy to obtain," Locke quotes.

They talk for a few more minutes before Logan speaks up.

"Specs, we gotta go. Chuck probably wants us back soon. Remember, we gotta leave tonight so by Thursday you'll be ready to go back to school."

"Guess this is goodbye for now guys," Jesse says. The girls hug him as they walk with him to his car and he shakes hands with the guys, Logan climbs onto his motorcycle and revs it up.

"Don't forget to call," Locke reminds his friend.

"As if I could," Jesse grins, "don't worry, I won't forget you guys."

"Take care Jesse," Katie says as she gives him another hug before he climbs into his car

"Well, bye all," Jesse says as he starts up his car. With a final wave, he pulls out of the parking lot and heads for where the X-jet was located, Logan right behind him on his motorcycle.

Xavier was waiting for the two of them when they arrived. Politely asking how the party had gone, Xavier felt relief when he discovered that Jesse's friends hadn't, for the most part, shunned him because he was a mutant. Matt's attitude was regretful, but it couldn't be helped. Some people would just never accept mutants. Ray's parents had turned him out, Kurt was shunned by nearly everyone he met when not using his holowatch if not outright attacked, Jean had had her trophies taken away, and the Morlocks were shunned by all of society, both for being homeless and for being mutants. But Xavier and his students were working to change the world, to make it so that everyone was accepted equally, were judged under the same laws.

As Logan loads the vehicles into the X-Jet, Xavier showed Jesse the basics of the controls for the plane. It would take months for him to fully learn how to fly the X-Jet, but it wasn't like he needed to learn right away.

The flight back to Bayville was uneventful. Logan continued to show Jesse how to pilot the X-Jet, though he didn't let the teen actually pilot it. He told him after he clocked at least ten successful hours in the simulator he could actually give the X-Jet a try.

"Don't even think about taking a joyride in the X-Jet," Logan warns.

"Someone actually did that?" Jesse chuckles, "lemme guess: Bobby."

Logan snorts. "He nearly wrecked the jet. He did wreck the X-Van."

"Yes, if it weren't for Kitty and Lance, they would have crashed the X-Jet," Xavier agrees.

"Lance?" Jesse asks, "he used to stay at the Institute?"

"He got sick of the Brotherhood and gave it a try," Logan replies, "I will admit though, the only ones who actually gave him a shot were Half-Pint and Red. After the X-Jet incident, he went back to the Brotherhood. But it did make sense. He and Scott just clashed too much."

"But he has been invited to return if he ever changes his mind," Xavier adds, "but I think he stays with the Brotherhood to keep them from getting into too much trouble. Trouble they would make worse by using their powers."

"It wouldn't surprise me with anything they do," Jesse says, "unless they go on the straight and narrow. They have the attitude of thugs, and I don't think that's gonna change anytime soon, if at all. It's sad, really. They could do so much with their abilities. Well, maybe not Todd. That guy seriously needs a shower."

Logan snorts in amusement. The amphibious mutant was always a strain on his nose whenever he was near. He did admit that Jesse's assessment of the Brotherhood was spot-on. Pietro could do wonders in most any job field he wanted to enter with his speed. Fred (Blob) could do so much with excavation/exploration with his near-invulnerability as well as his strength. Lance could work I excavation as well, or even off-set volcanic eruptions or earthquakes with his powers, by creating mini-quakes periodically to ease the stress and keep a large quake from occurring. Wanda, well, there was no telling what she could do. Todd, though, it did look like he had received a dud of a power from his X-gene.

The rest of the trip passes with nothing more than Logan explaining the finer details of piloting the X-Jet, what various switches did as well as tips on piloting in general. Jesse did seem interested, buy not thrilled with the idea as Bobby was, or Kurt had been. More like Scott or jean, like it was a duty to be performed. Logan supposed it made sense. Jesse was the oldest of the New Mutants by several months, with Tabitha being the next oldest but all of the others being half a year younger at the least. Of course, Kitty was one of the X-Men and she was only a Junior.

Bobby was the designated leader of the New Mutants, but that didn't mean he would keep the position. None of the other New Mutants had the temperament to be a leader, not even Jesse who plainly stated that he was either a follower who voiced his own opinion or a loner.

As Logan guides the X-Jet into the hanger, he chuckles to himself. Tomorrow he was going to put Jesse through a session in the Danger Room, only this time he would be going in with the other New Mutants. It would be Jesse's first team exercise.

"Well Specs, we'll get your car up to the garage later," Logan informs the teenage mutant, "for now, stow your gear in you room and report to the Danger Room for a testing of your abilities. Tomorrow we'll give you a full run-through."

Jesse groans but does as the feral mutant says.

Xavier gives Logan a quizzical look after Jesse leaves. "Logan, what are you planning? Isn't that a bit much for him to do?"

"He'll be with the other New Mutants," Logan answers, "he showed good enough intuition with that falling branch to show that he's ready, at least for a lower level exercise."

"Indeed he did," Xavier agrees, "just don't push him too far too fast."

"Charles, what do you think of Jesse's attitude here at the Institute?" Logan asks suddenly.

Xavier frowns, but answers after thinking for a moment. "He's friendly with the other students, especially Rogue, Scott, and Kurt, and he is diligent in whatever duties we assign him. He's doing well in school and his training as well. He seems to be coping well from his ordeal with his family."

"I don't think he is at all," Logan states. At Xavier's surprised look, he explains. "I was talking to his former youth director and she said that he seemed totally different. Now, aside from the guilt we expected when we first explained things to him, he has acted the same way as long as we have known him. And it's this attitude, I was told, that seemed totally different from what his former youth group knew. Charles, he fit in there a lot like Rogue did here at first. Something is not right, and I got a bad feeling that it's just gonna get worse."

Xavier steeples his fingers and sighs, contemplating this new information. "Jesse guards his mind well, especially his feelings. No one here is an empathy, and Jean and I can only get glimpses of very strong emotion. We'll just have to keep our eyes open and be prepared for anything. I will inform Ororo and Hank to the situation as well."

"You do that Charles," Logan says, "meanwhile we'll just have to hope for the best. It might be wise to inform Rogue, Scott, and the elf to the problem as well. They can keep a better eye on him that we can without being overly intrusive."

"Let's just hope that its Jesse's real personality that we're seeing now and not something he's created to keep from dealing with the pain," Xavier says sadly. Beyond being there for him, there wasn't much they could do for Jesse.

-

Review responses 

Aaron: Jesse/Wanda? I can't see it. That and I really don't know much about her. Jesse's gonna be in need of someone full of life and peppy before this story is done (and no, not Kitty. She's a great character but she's TOO peppy). And Wanda is too emotional and Jesse's not the right kind of person to help her through her and she'll need help that Jesse won't be able to give other than be someone to talk to. Not only that, 'things they have in common'? Like what? Wanda was in an asylum for years, and Jesse had to go through the torment of having a large family. And since I plan on trying to bring some of the themes from the mainstream Marvel comics to this story, such as the Friends of Humanity, and as much as I hate to admit it the South, which is where Jesse is from, is a veritable breeding ground for bigotry, there'll too many other things happening for Jesse to get a girlfriend. I'm strictly saving that for the sequel (or the sequel's sequel since I'm hoping for a series or trilogy here) but I will try to keep Jesse's options open. Oh, and I already have Jesse's code name picked, and while I agree most names like that are derived from their powers, Jesse's is not. Any other character I've developed so far for this story is code-named like that, but not him because I just plain like what I plan to give him. But it will fit him. And by bringing in Spider-Man, I really meant how is he gonna exist. I could do the movieverse, minus Spider-Man 2 since that took place a few years later and it hasn't been more than a year since mutants were unveiled, or I could do just general knowledge since I know next to nothing about the comics (just the old cartoon. Not the MTV one but the one that appeared on FOX and is currently on Jetix).

Agent-G: Yeah, I noticed a lot of my mistakes as soon as I started reading other X-Men: Evolution fics like yours. I could say this is A/U but that would mean that all four seasons happened in a single year, since Kitty was a Freshman when the show started and Kurt was at least a Sophomore. And I think this chapter will explain why the authorities let Jesse go. And I'll be working on corrections for a while yet, including when I reload the chapters and make the format corrections. And Jesse is sorta reacting the way Wolverine's healing factor does when he goes through an overly traumatic event (what happened to Logan's family, what happened to his first love, Weapon X, when he got the adamantium ripped off of his skeleton by Magneto in the comics, when he became Apocalypse's Horseman of Death in the comics) only instead of a mutant healing factor healing his mind, he's just burying the memories. They'll come out eventually, but not for a while, and I can guarantee it won't be pretty. A chapter or two from now (which will be a few months within the story, just before or just after Christmas). And thanks for the site! It was hard navigating since my computer hates Javascript (or any link that requires a new window to be opened. I so need to upgrade this thing), but its been very helpful.

Now everyone, repeat after me: all hail That place has nearly everything you'd need to write a Marvel fic. It has bios on almost every character to EVER appear in a Marvel comic, including which issue they first appeared, which issues for different versions of that character, power description, a basic physical description (namely just eyes, hair, height) and usually a picture. Some, namely major characters like Jean Grey, Wolverine, and Rogue have multiple pictures. They also have info on teams, various alien races, and a veritable dictionary of Marvel stuff. I've found info needed on several characters that I plan to introduce, and info on characters already in X-Men: Evolution that I want to put in (mostly Wolverine, but also other characters). I plan for this to be the first part of a trilogy, and I hope to get at least twenty, hopefully thirty, chapters a fic, with over 100,000 words a story as well.

And seriously people, go read Agent-G's stuff! He's a genius! Especially compared to me. His only weakness is grammar, but he's gotten a LOT better since he started.

As I said in the last chapter, Jesse will have one psionic ability stronger than his other abilities. I would like some reader input as to what you think he should have. Once again, the choices are:

1. Telepathy (can penetrate any mental barrier and will even be able to help Logan sort his memories)

2. Telekinesis (basically, he can shred matter with a thought by severing molecular bonds and create virtually solid barriers that can stop most anything short of a high-end missile)

3. Psionic bolts (can gather free energy floating around in the air and chuck it out in concussive blasts with relative ease. If you're a fan of Dragon Ball Z, think Vegeta. This will give him slightly enhanced telekinesis as well)

4. Astral projection (his astral projected body will be able to interact physically if this is the one)

5. Memory altering/mind control (basically, think Mastermind with what he did to Wanda and Mesmero with what he did to the X-Men and Gambit)

6. Astral plane (basically he's one heck of a badass on the astral plane, where the powers of the mind are the ONLY powers viable, plus the mystic arts. He can pull others to the astral plane whether they could get there on their own or not including non-psionics and pull others from it. He can also completely transform his body into an astral form, making him sortof like a ghost, or maybe a poltergeist)

7. Sight (can see into the future, the past, and the present with the utmost clarity, or at least as much clarity as you can get with the future; will also have a danger sense like Spider-Man's, only it works for anyone in his immediate vicinity that he feels responsible for)

Well, I hope everyone who reads this reviews, to tell me what they think. I'd love to hear from you. It might make me get the enxt chapter out quicker.


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